Veterinary medicine — profession and community

There are many definitions of profession. I particularly like the one given by Wikipedia — “A profession is a vocation founded upon specialized educational training, the purpose of which is to supply disinterested objective counsel and service to others, for a direct and definite compensation.” Veterinary medicine is often discussed as a profession and this is entirely appropriate as profession recognizes both our specialized training and our commitment to the public good. It defines us in relation to society, relates to the trade-off between the right of self-regulation and the responsibility to ensure that we serve the public with integrity. It identifies our external goals — what we do for the betterment of our cities, country, and the world. Other elements often associated with professional status include having a national association, high ethical standards, and being held in high regard by the public.

Veterinary medicine also means community, although it is not often discussed in this context. Dictionary definitions of community often refer to “a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common” or “a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.” It is the latter definition that is appropriate and of extreme importance for veterinary medicine.

When I think about my profession I am reminded of the amazing community aspects of veterinary medicine, in particular the veterinarians and registered veterinary technicians who give thousands of volunteer hours every year to advance the profession. Hundreds of colleagues take time off from busy practices and from families to donate their time, talents and ideas to help the profession grow at the provincial and national levels. We are brothers and sisters under the tent, bound by an intense love of animals and commitment to their welfare. I experience a feeling of kinship on meeting other veterinarians, wherever they may be from or wherever the venue. I felt this intensely at the recent CVMA Annual Convention in Vancouver.

The veterinary community includes staff members. I found the November President’s Message in this journal to be moving in its expression of care for registered veterinary technicians. One of the characteristics of a community is the caring for each other. Many people consider that this is in fact the essence of community. Fabian Pfortmüller (1), a Swiss community builder and entrepreneur in New York City, considers community to be “a group of people that care about each other and feel they belong together.” He says, “This is where the magic of a community happens. When people care about each other, they develop trust. And trust unlocks collaboration, sharing, support, hope, safety and much more. While most organizations in the world optimize their performance towards external goals, communities optimize for trust.”

Chavis and Lee (2) remind us that “Community is both a feeling and a set of relationships among people.” “Members of a community have a sense of trust, belonging, safety, and caring for each other. They have an individual and collective sense that they can, as part of that community, influence their environments and each other.” The community spirit in our profession can play a major role in assisting colleagues with mental health issues. The inherent trust and caring of the veterinary community can go a long way towards preventing mental health illness, accommodating colleagues who need help, and not discriminating against those in the community who experience mental ill health.

Community often involves diverse views and the veterinary community is no different in this regard. While respecting this diversity the community nonetheless needs to have strong, clear positions if it is to be understood by society and to advance its mission. This involves building consensus.

Writing about the medical community, Pellegrino (3) noted that “A moral community is one whose members are bound to each other by a set of commonly held ethical commitments and whose purpose is something other than mere self-interest.” Community is about giving. Veterinarians have the opportunity to promote community at several levels — as part of the practice team, provincial organization or national organization. This leads to positive outcomes for not only the organizations but also the givers, who often find that the experience is energizing and leads to personal growth.