ABSTRACT
Veterinary Social Work (VSW) is a new and growing field that exists at the intersection of veterinary medicine and social work. This chapter explores how this new partnership between veterinarians and social workers might contribute to the narratives of our clients, our patients, and ourselves. Veterinary Social Workers can assist clients in dealing with difficult decisions surrounding euthanasia and challenging emotions such as grief and guilt. They can also assist practitioners and staff with their own wellness and resilience in the face of daily stresses of practice.
Three social workers were interviewed for this chapter: Eric Richman, Julie Gass, and Simon Rochman. Topics discussed include anticipatory grief and disenfranchised grief experienced by clients, and compassion fatigue and moral stress experienced by practitioners.
The reader is encouraged to consider their own loss narrative, which can help identify individual loss triggers. A knowledge of personal triggers and coping styles can help practitioners support clients and patients with minimal interference from their own past experiences.
