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Item Thriving in clinical veterinary practice : a strengths-based, qualitative investigation of thriving in clinical veterinarians in Aotearoa New Zealand : a thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Veterinary Science at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2025-11-21) Cantley, Charlotte Emily LouiseVeterinarians play an important role in society, contributing to animal health, public health, and environmental sustainability. However, there is growing international concern about the well-being and workforce stability of veterinarians, particularly those working in clinical practice. Much of the existing research has focused on the negative impact of veterinary work on well-being, emphasising that veterinarians experience high levels of psychological distress and burnout. However, there is a lack of understanding of what enables veterinarians not only to cope in clinical practice but also to thrive and enjoy fulfilling careers. This research employed a qualitative approach, grounded in positive psychology, to explore the factors that help veterinarians thrive in clinical practice. Using in-depth, semi-structured interviews, this research investigated the lived experiences of clinical veterinarians in Aotearoa New Zealand, to identify the factors that contribute to a fulfilling and sustainable career. Participants across the three studies represented veterinarians from a wide range of clinical practice types, including companion animal, production animal, equine, and mixed practice. They included late-career veterinarians (n = 19), new and recent graduates (n = 22), and mid-late career veterinarians who were not practice owners or senior managers (n = 29). Reflexive thematic analysis was utilised to identify key themes from the data. Three final key concepts emerged as critical to thriving in veterinary clinical practice: positive leadership, a psychologically safe clinic culture, and a strong sense of purpose and meaning in work, referred to as the “3Ps” of thriving. For early-career veterinarians, positive mentorship in a psychologically safe environment was crucial for developing confidence, self-efficacy, and a professional identity suitable for general practice. Mid- and late-career veterinarians who experienced positive leadership and a healthy, safe workplace culture reported an evolving sense of purpose that included providing care to patients and expanded to encompass mentoring and supporting others in the profession, as well as philanthropic work and community commitment. These veterinarians expressed high levels of engagement and were often motivated by fostering thriving in others. The attitudes and behaviours of clinic managers were noted as particularly important. Thus, a thriving veterinary career can be considered an odyssey — a long, transformative journey shaped by challenges, growth, and continuous learning. It reflects an evolving sense of purpose, making the role of a clinical veterinarian far more than just a job. Based on these findings, a practical framework of evidence-based recommendations was designed to foster thriving throughout a veterinarian’s career. These recommendations target three levels of influence: the individual, the clinic, and the broader veterinary profession, and may help address the ongoing issues of recruitment and retention in veterinary practice. This research provides valuable insights into the benefits of pursuing a clinical career, contributing to the growing body of literature on positive well-being in the veterinary field. It highlights the importance of leadership and psychological safety — topics that have received relatively little attention in veterinary contexts — and shows how they enable veterinarians to find purpose and meaning in their work. Importantly, the research highlights that fostering thriving is a collective responsibility, shared between veterinary businesses, individual veterinarians, and the profession as a whole.Item Veterinarians' perspectives of neurology : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Veterinary Science at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2024-10-29) Shea, AnitaNegative perspectives of neurology are commonly reported in medical education and have led to concerns regarding patient care and insufficient numbers of neurologists. Most of the proposed contributors to this “neurophobia” relate to intellectual difficulty learning and applying neurology knowledge. However, most studies to date have explored neurophobia superficially and differences between how neurophobia is defined and how it is measured challenge what the term means and our understanding of why it develops. Despite this lack of clarity, there are increasing numbers of reports that cite educational interventions to combat neurophobia. While the medical and veterinary professions share many similarities, there is very little research exploring neurophobia in veterinary medicine. It is unclear whether negative perspectives of neurology are common in veterinarians, and what contributes to the development of veterinarians’ perspectives of neurology. The overarching aims of this research were to better understand veterinarians’ perspectives of neurology, how and why they develop, and the effect they can have on further learning and clinical experiences. This research investigated veterinarians’ and veterinary students’ perspectives of neurology using a mixed method approach. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews explored how veterinarians’ experiences, and their reactions to those experiences, contributed to their overall attitude towards neurology. Statistical analysis of subsequent surveys of veterinarians and undergraduate veterinary students focused on those with negative or positive attitudes towards neurology to further explore these differing perspectives. The findings of all studies were integrated to obtain a holistic understanding of how similar inciting experiences can lead to different attitudes towards neurology. Intellectual difficulty learning and applying neurology was reported by most participants, regardless of their attitude towards neurology. Differences between participants with negative or positive attitudes towards neurology were often dictated by the individual’s affective responses to that difficulty, which in turn were shaped by personality traits, values, professional identity, and the ability of the individual to resolve internal conflict. Resolution of internal conflict could improve one’s attitude towards neurology. In contrast to medical literature on neurophobia, these findings suggest that an individual’s attitude towards neurology is determined by the way they react to intellectual difficulty, not the difficulty itself. This distinction has implications for educational interventions for any difficult subject, not just neurology.Item Euthanasia of dogs and cats by veterinarians in New Zealand: protocols, procedures and experiences.(Taylor and Francis Group, 2023-04-25) Gates MC; Kells NJ; Kongara K; Littlewood KEAIMS: To collect data on protocols used by New Zealand veterinarians to perform euthanasia of dogs and cats, and to explore opinions towards the training they received in euthanasia during veterinary school. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was administered to all veterinarians registered with the Veterinary Council of New Zealand. The survey asked respondents about their practices' policies for euthanasia; protocols for performing euthanasia of dogs and cats; opinions towards euthanasia training received in veterinary school; and subsequent experiences with euthanasia in practice. Descriptive statistics were provided for all quantitative study variables and thematic analysis was performed on the free-text comments. RESULTS: The survey was completed by 361/1,448 (24.9%) veterinarians in companion or mixed animal practice. The mean numbers of dogs and cats euthanised each month were 7.2 (median 5; min 0; max 60) and 7.9 (median 5; min 0; max 60), respectively. Fewer than half of respondents reported that their clinic had a standard protocol for euthanising dogs (147/361; 40.7%) or cats (157/361; 43.5%). For euthanasia of dogs, 119/361 (32.9%) always used sedation while 71/361 (19.7%) indicated that they would not use sedation. For euthanasia of cats, 170/361 (47.1%) always used sedation while 53/361 (14.7%) indicated that they would not use sedation. Placement of IV catheters, methods for patient restraint, preferences towards the presence of owners during euthanasia, services provided with euthanasia, and discussions with owners were also highly variable and handled case-by-case depending on the client, patient, and clinical scenario. When asked about the euthanasia training received at veterinary school, it was generally ranked as below satisfactory, with approximately one-third of respondents indicating that they received no training in dealing with emotional clients (113/361; 31.3%), sedation protocols for euthanasia (107/361; 29.6%), or managing compassion fatigue (132/361; 36.6%). Most respondents (268/361; 74.2%) received no formal training in euthanasia after graduation and learned from experience or discussions with colleagues. Providing animals and owners with a good experience during the euthanasia process was highlighted as important for managing compassion fatigue. CONCLUSIONS: Euthanasia is a common procedure in companion animal practice and there is considerable variation in how veterinarians approach both the technical and non-technical elements. Training provided during veterinary school was generally considered below satisfactory, particularly regarding managing compassion fatigue and clients' emotional needs. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Providing veterinarians with additional training on adapting their euthanasia protocols to different clinical scenarios may improve the experience for patients, owners and veterinary staff.Item Teaching tomorrow's great veterinarians(American Veterinary Medical Association, 2022-11) Jillings E; Gordon EItem Career pathways of New Zealand veterinary graduates : influences, experiences, and decisions : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Veterinary Science at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2021) King, NatalieAs local and international concern about a shortage of veterinarians grows, developing an understanding of veterinarians’ career pathways and the factors that influence their career decisions is of increasing importance. The aim of this research was to explore the patterns that exist among the career pathways of two cohorts of New Zealand veterinary graduates, 10- and 20-years post-graduation, and to identify the factors that had been influential in shaping their career trajectories. A mixed methods approach provided a means to develop a detailed understanding of veterinarians’ career pathways through integration of survey (n=109) and interview (n=25) data. Perceptions of why people cease veterinary work were documented alongside the lived career experiences of these two cohorts of Massey University veterinary graduates. Cohort members’ career pathways were varied. Most (83%) held a clinical veterinary role 10 years after graduation. However, after 20 years, fewer (57%) held clinical veterinary roles. Almost one-quarter of the 20-year cohort worked in non-veterinary roles, and a further 14% held non-clinical veterinary roles. Some aspects of career patterns differed between the men and women and between the two cohorts, but there were also similarities. Veterinarians’ career decisions were multifaceted, and six key themes were developed to describe the factors that influenced them. Considering the cohort members’ material, social, and cognitive work values provided a useful lens through which to explore how their work environments and personal characteristics and aspirations influenced their career decisions. Veterinarians’ workplace experiences and the degree of fit between their personal characteristics and aspirations, and the workplace environment, influenced their feelings towards their work and their state of wellbeing, which in turn influenced their career decisions. However, these factors alone were insufficient to fully describe the influences on veterinarians’ career decision-making. Opportunities, professional networks, and non-work factors also played a key role in shaping cohort members’ career trajectories. The findings of this research provide insight into the career patterns and decision-making of New Zealand veterinarians which will be useful for future workforce planning, and in developing initiatives to enhance veterinarians’ career fulfilment and retention within clinical practice and the New Zealand veterinary profession.Item Multiple veterinary stakeholders' perspectives on important professionalism attributes for career success in veterinary clinical practice : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Veterinary Science at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2020) Gordon, Stuart John GaltThere is an increasing body of literature on professionalism in the health sciences. Most research has, however, elicited the opinions of single groups of experts and tried to use these to generalise across the profession. The aim of the thesis was, therefore, to gain a broad understanding of professionalism by appraising the voices of many tiers of veterinary stakeholders involved in veterinary clinical practice. Through a mixed methods approach using card-sort analysis, online questionnaires, focus groups, critical incident reporting and analysis of client complaints, information was collected from first year and final year Massey University veterinary students, clinical veterinary practitioners and veterinary clients. An online questionnaire was also used to gather the final year veterinary students’ opinions on veterinary professionalism pedagogy. The iterative sampling method ensured that a wide range of perceptions were represented. These multiple perspectives, along with the existing knowledge contained within the literature on veterinary and medical professionalism, provide the basis upon which to develop a theoretical framework on professionalism in the veterinary context. The synthesis of data into a framework was undertaken primarily through a grounded theory approach. The research also provides support for the importance of including professionalism in veterinary curricula. Three overarching themes emerged from the analysis of the veterinary stakeholders’ opinions, namely: ‘committing to best practice’, ‘building the veterinarian-client relationship’ and ‘client expectations’. The framework of veterinary professionalism that has evolved from scrutiny of these themes revolves around the principles of ‘veterinary care’. Career success and satisfaction for practising clinical veterinarians hinges on three crucial domains of veterinary care: ‘patient-centred care’, ‘relationship-centred care’, and ‘self-care’. The focus of patient-centred care is the animal, while the foci of relationship-centred care are the client and veterinary colleagues. The self-care domain focuses on the practising veterinarian as a person. Professionalism, therefore, fundamentally revolves around veterinarians’ accountability to a social contract with patients, clients and colleagues as well as to themselves. Analysis of veterinary student opinions on the teaching of professionalism revealed constructive viewpoints and recommendations. Students recommended that the veterinary professionalism course be embedded across the whole primary veterinary teaching programme, including in the early years of study. It was further suggested that role-playing and reflective practice should be used throughout the programme to support the development of professionalism. The need to assess professionalism adequately and appropriately was also highlighted, as was the need to include rewards for displays of good professional behaviour. The potential for the hidden curriculum and negative clinical role models to undermine the teaching of professionalism was also addressed. Additionally, students recommended that the veterinary professionalism curriculum should prepare graduates for the job market by accommodating the requirements of veterinary employers. This research represents the first time that the opinions of multiple veterinary stakeholders on the attributes of professionalism important for career success have been solicited in one series of research studies. Furthermore, this study has used novel methodologies to determine the opinions of stakeholders. For the first time, a card-sort analysis has been used to solicit veterinary students’ opinions and the critical incident technique has been used to determine the perspectives of practising veterinarians. Analysing client complaints lodged with the Veterinary Council of New Zealand also represents an original method of determining those attributes of professionalism that will promote veterinary career success and satisfaction. By seeking the perspectives of multiple veterinary stakeholders, the body of knowledge about professionalism has been extended. Furthermore, the neoteric framework of veterinary professionalism, developed in the study, could help to form the basis for constructing a robust curriculum prescribing the teaching and assessment of veterinary professionalism. It may also be used by veterinarians as a guide in the practice of veterinary medicine and in their relationships with patients, clients, colleagues and society.Item Occupational leptospirosis in New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Massey University, Institute of Veterinary, Animal and Biomedical Sciences, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Massey University, 2016) Sanhueza Frigolett, Juan ManuelAlthough a decreasing trend of human notifications was observed from 2001 to 2014 (Chapter 1), the incidence of human leptospirosis in New Zealand continues to be higher than in other high-income countries and affecting predominately people occupationally exposed to livestock (i.e. abattoir workers and farmers). Additionally, evidence suggests that leptospirosis may have a higher detrimental effect on production in deer compared with beef cattle or sheep. It was also observed that vaccination against Leptospira of not previously infected animals reduce the risk of urinary shedding of leptospires after challenge, and that there is limited evidence supporting or disproving that maternally derived antibodies interfere with the effect of vaccination when animals are vaccinated at a young age. When sero-positivity was defined as a serum microscopic agglutination test (MAT) titre of ≥48, 6.6% of farmers (Chapter 2) and 5.1% of veterinarians (Chapter 3) were sero-positive to at least one of five Leptospira serovars (Hardjo-bovis, Pomona, Copenhageni, Ballum, Tarassovi). Veterinarians had a higher risk of being seropositive when they slaughtered cattle or pigs at home or worked in a mixed animal practice. Assisting calving of cattle or deer, farming deer alone or in combination with cattle and/or sheep, flat terrain on farm, and abundance of wild deer on farm, increased Leptospira sero-positivity of farmers. Apart from vaccinating farmed livestock, increased awareness of such risk factors and the use of protective equipment may reduce the human leptospirosis incidence in these occupational groups. Similar to earlier observations in abattoir workers, Leptospira sero-prevalence of farmers and veterinarians was associated with the recall of influenza-like illness of sampled individuals. Using the estimated incidence of influenza-like illness attributable to Leptospira infection (population attributable risk) of veterinarians (0.05%), farmers (1.3%) and abattoir workers (2.7%), we quantified the burden of human leptospirosis in terms of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and economic cost of infection; the latter including the cost of vaccination, which is primarily used in dairy cattle (Chapter 4). Annual DALYs were estimated to be 0.43 per 100,000 people in New Zealand, and 16.76 per 100,000 people when only considering the occupationally-exposed population (abattoir workers, farmers, veterinarians). This ranks leptospirosis in New Zealand’s high-risk population similar to worldwide estimates of DALYs for rabies and dengue. The total annual cost of leptospirosis due to human disease (i.e. treatment and absence from work); production loss in deer, beef cattle, and sheep; and the cost for vaccinating them was estimated to be NZ$25.36 million. One third of this total was attributed to vaccination of dairy cattle. The annual cost of human treatment and workplace absence due to severe and mild leptospirosis was NZ$4.49 million. Total lost production cost was NZ$11.31 million, half of which was attributable to reproductive and growth reduction in deer. No estimates are currently available from any other country for the public health burden and the overall economic loss including farmed livestock for this disease. Since vaccination of livestock is currently regarded as the most effective means of preventing human exposure, the literature on the efficacy of Leptospira vaccines for preventing urinary shedding was systematically reviewed (Chapter 5). The metaanalysis of vaccination trial results, using articles with sufficiently detailed data, resulted in a pooled vaccine efficacy estimate of 82% when shedding was assessed by culture. The findings of this thesis contribute towards a better understanding of the public health burden, economic cost, infection sources for humans, and the efficacy of vaccination for reducing the risk of Leptospira urinary shedding in domestic livestockItem Workplace bullying among New Zealand veterinarians : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Psychology at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2016) Rasmussen, WendyWorkplace bullying is a global issue associated with devastating consequences for individuals and is costly to organisations. Veterinarians play a vital role in New Zealand and whilst there has been considerable research on workplace stress within the profession, little is known about the extent to which workplace bullying occurs and the problems it gives rise to. This study examined job demands (team conflict and destructive leadership) and job resources (ethical leadership and perceived organisational support) and their relationship to employees’ physical health, level of strain and organisational variables in the context of workplace bullying. In addition, the buffering role of psychological capital against workplace bullying was examined. This study investigated these relationships by means of an online survey, using multiple regression analyses to test the main hypotheses. Workplace bullying was prevalent amongst this sample of New Zealand veterinarians and was associated with worse physical health, higher levels of strain, reduced self-rated job performance and higher intentions to quit. Destructive leadership and team conflict had direct effects on personal and organisational variables and created an environment where workplace bullying was able to flourish. Workplace bullying did not mediate relationships to the extent expected. Positive resources reduced the effects of workplace bullying on strain and selfreported job performance but not on physical health symptoms, intentions to quit and absenteeism. Overall, the results indicate negative work conditions are stronger than positive work conditions and are associated with undesirable individual and organisational variables. Workplace bullying is a potent stressor and is fostered by negative work environments. This study concludes it is vital that organisations create positive work environments to prevent or reduce bullying from occurring.Item Occupational control in the development of the veterinary profession : a study in the sociology of professions : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of M.A. (Soc.Sc.) in Sociology at Massey University(Massey University, 1979) Burns, Edgar, A. M.This study examines the development of the veterinary profession from the theoretical perspective of the sociology of professions. In the initial chapter the three major analytic approaches in this field are discussed: trait, professionalisation and occupational control. It is argued that these approaches successively provide greater insight into the nature of professions and professionalism; and the following chapters proceed to a socio-historical analysis of the veterinary profession in order to make an assessment of this arguement. In chapter two the most influential of the processual approaches: Wilensky's model of professionalisation, is applied in a limited comparative framework to the emergence of the veterinary profession. Since it offers only a partial causal explanation of occupational change it is seen to represent a half-way stage between trait and occupational control perspectives. In the next two chapters the third theoretical approach is taken up using Johnson's typology of occupational power to consider occupational change specifically in the development of the New Zealand veterinary profession. Chapter three covers the first two phases up to the 1930's and makes use of the idea of government patronage. Chapter four continues this analysis by tracing the development of the veterinary club system from the late 1930's. The concepts of state mediation and professional heteronomy are used to analyse changes in the veterinary profession during this period. The final chapter recapitulates the course of the argument. There is a major degree of support for the-occupational control approach which treats professionalism as only one of several possible institutionalised variations in the distribution of occupational power. In the case of the veterinary profession, this is by far the most productive (theoretical approach in accounting for differences within the profession in a variety geographical settings and historical periods. It is then suggested that Johnson's typology might be extended in the light of the present study, by adding a fourth type to the three main forms of occupational control Johnson has already proposed.Item A study of the information search process used by veterinarians in clinical practice in New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Veterinary Science at Massey University(Massey University, 1988) Boland, Christopher JamesVeterinarians face problems in deciding whether or not to adopt new technical innovations which become available to them for use in veterinary practice and in solving problems they have not previously faced. In these "new situations" which they face frequently, they must draw on various sources of information to make an informed evaluation. This thesis examines the process by which practising veterinarians search for this information, the sources they use, and the problems they face. By the nature of the information being sought, it was necessary to gather the data after the search for information on a particular topic had been completed. To minimise the biases inherent in reconstruction of past events, three different research approaches were used to provide complementary insights into the information search procedure. Information concerning the nature of the employment and work of veterinarians is presented, with particular emphasis on the 70% of the profession who are employed in practice. The value and limitations of various information sources were investigated, and views sought on needs not currently met. The most important feature of the information sources from the viewpoint of respondents was that they be in a form that is easily stored, retrieved and used, so that information was at hand when it was needed. Information supplied at a time remote from the need was not valued highly, compared with (possibly lower quality) information available easily when it was needed. Requests for additional information services concentrated heavily on those which would improve the management of information within the work environment. Veterinarians see themselves as active users of information, but working under severe time constraints which limit their options. There were no marked differences among various categories of veterinarians in their search approaches. Since requests to them were infrequent, the managers of information sources saw veterinarians as passive in their search behaviour. In fact, this was because time pressures forced veterinarians to use locally available information for most searches, resorting to recognized information suppliers only when local sources failed them. There was clearly a mismatching between these two viewpoints, and in the light of the study a map of information source usage has been drawn up, showing the intensity of use of various sources. There is an "inner circle" of information sources that are used for most problems. Preferred sources are those with which the veterinarians can interact easily, especially those with which they are familiar. They prefer those which reduce the time required to complete the search process. The patterns of information use identified in the study are likely to be applicable to other professional groups which have frequent need for new information. Educators will also find this study of information search useful for their professional training curriculum development.