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#NOMV: Suicide Prevention for Veterinary Professionals

Sep 2, 2022 | AZPetVet

You may have seen the hashtags #NOMV or #NOMVSS in the news or your social media newsfeed lately. Unfortunately, this isn’t anything new to those within the veterinary industry, but it may be unfamiliar to many of our clients and readers so we’d like to explain a little bit more about it.

What is NOMV?

The NOMV acronym stands for Not One More Vet. NOMV is a global online community created to support the mental health of professionals working in the veterinary industry.

How NOMV Came to Be
In 2014, members of the veterinary community were shocked and saddened by the loss of one of their colleagues to suicide, world renown veterinarian Dr. Sophia Yin. The death of Dr. Yin brought heightened awareness to the reality that veterinarians have one of the highest suicide rates of any profession. 1 in 6 veterinarians have considered suicide, with female veterinarians being 3.5 times more likely to commit suicide than members of the general public according to a study by the CDC.

In the wake of the tragic loss of Dr. Yin, Dr. Nicole McArthur created a private Facebook group entitled NOMV as a safe space to discuss “everything veterinary medicine – the good, the bad, and the ugly.” Dr. McArthur extended invitations to her veterinarian friends, and encouraged them to invite their colleagues as well. Today, the Facebook group has more than 27,000 veterinary professional members worldwide. The group provides an outlet for members to share stories, celebrate, mourn, and lean on one another for peer-to-peer support.

In addition to the online community, Not One More Vet (NOMV) has grown into a robust non-profit with many different facets providing support, education, and resources for veterinarians, veterinary students, and support staff (NOMVSS) across the globe. From peer-to-peer support groups to educational programs that focus on leadership and wellness, the organization continues to build crisis support resources specifically for the veterinary industry.

One of the foundational mantras of the organization is “Never Alone”, reminding members that there are others who understand what you are going through. NOMV is dedicated improving mental health and wellness within the industry, providing services designed to ultimately result in a reduction of suicides among veterinary professionals.

Our Participation
The health and wellness of our AZPetVet team members is a priority, and we don’t take that responsibility lightly. As an organization, we seek to provide support to our team in a variety of ways, from wellness programs to team building opportunities that help create a network of support and community within our hospitals. Admittedly, there is always opportunity to do more – to do better – and we continue to strive for excellence, because our team is our family.

We are honored to be participating once again in NOMV’s 2022 Race Around the World. The virtual race is a fundraising event, taking place throughout the month of September. Participants will walk/run/bike to collectively travel the distance of the circumference of the world. The race will raise funds for the programs and resources dedicated to supporting our team and industry as a whole. AZPetVet has setup a race team and we are covering race entrance fees for any of our team members who’d like to participate. We have also committed to match up to $5k of funds raised by our AZPetVet team of racers!

If you’d like to make a donation to Race Team AZPetVet, follow this link!

To learn more about Not One More Vet, visit www.NOMV.org.

Disclaimer: Not intended to be a substitute for professional veterinarian advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your veterinarian with any questions you may have regarding the medical condition of your pet. If you think your pet has a medical emergency, call or visit your veterinarian or your local veterinary emergency hospital immediately.