High suicide rates reflect the many stresses of veterinarians Working with animals is immensely rewarding for Jason Sweitzer and other veterinarians, but also highly stressful. Veterinarians are 2.7 times more likely than the general public to die by suicide, according to a 2020 study. (Source: Jason Sweitzer via Cronkite News) By Alison Cutler | January 14, 2021 at 1:01 PM MST - Updated January 14 at 1:01 PM
TUCSON, Ariz. (KOLD News 13) - In 2014, veterinarian Jason Sweitzer started his 10-minute drive home from the clinic in Conejo Valley, California, where he routinely treated animals that had been stabbed, shot, abused and made to suffer other horrors.
This time, his thoughts drifted to suicide.
The aging Plum Island facility (dating from 1954) operates “biosafety level three” laboratories, which refers to safety standards set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On the other hand, the NBAF will have laboratories at biosafety level 4, the highest level, which allows for expanded research of significantly more virulent diseases.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which is responsible for security at the labs, states that the NBAF will cover the full gamut of diseases, researching “high-consequence biological threats involving human, zoonotic (i.e., transmitted from animals to humans) and foreign animal diseases.”
In 2010, the Government Accountability Office tasked a committee to assess DHS safety and security plans. The results were not encouraging.
Arizona PBS
Jan. 13, 2021
Working with animals is immensely rewarding for Jason Sweitzer and other veterinarians, but also highly stressful. Veterinarians are 2.7 times more likely than the general public to die by suicide, according to a 2020 study. (Photo courtesy of Jason Sweitzer)
In 2014, veterinarian Jason Sweitzer started his 10-minute drive home from the clinic in Conejo Valley, California, where he routinely treated animals that had been stabbed, shot, abused and made to suffer other horrors.
This time, his thoughts drifted to suicide.
“No one else was on the road. What if my car just veered off the highway?” Sweitzer recently recalled, his voice wavering.