Alcohol Use in the Veterinary Profession: A Hidden Crisis
Veterinary professionals are compassionate experts dedicated to the wellbeing of animals. Yet behind the consulting room door, many are navigating intense workplace pressures, demanding workloads and significant emotional strain.
New research from Oxford Brookes University is helping to uncover one aspect of that hidden reality: the relationship between alcohol use, mental health and stigma within the veterinary professions (veterinarians and veterinary nurses).
Olivia Cormier knows the profession from both sides. After spending 13 years working as a veterinarian, she returned to academia to investigate a topic she felt was rarely discussed openly.
"I've always been interested in the mental health of my colleagues and the profession," she says.
That interest led Olivia to complete a master's degree in Psychology at Oxford Brookes University, where her dissertation explored Alcohol-related Stigma among Veterinary Professionals. The work has since evolved into a project examining the factors that influence alcohol use and help-seeking behaviours across the veterinary workforce and now into a PhD project that aims to co-develop an intervention strategy to improve access and provision of alcohol-related support for veterinary professionals.
The research emerges at a time when veterinary teams face growing challenges. Increased demand for services, workforce shortages and rising public scrutiny have combined to create significant pressures across the sector.
"People (working in veterinary practice) hugely care about what they do," says Olivia. "They don't want to let their colleagues down. They don't want to let their patients down. As a result, they often end up at the bottom of the priority list."
Her latest study involved more than 650 participants from across veterinary practice, including veterinarians, veterinary nurses, receptionists, practice managers and veterinary care assistants. The findings suggest that around 40% of participants were drinking at some level of risk that may be impacting their mental or physical health, relationships and social interactions.
The research highlights the complex role alcohol can play as a coping strategy and its impact on poor mental health. Both drinking to cope with negative emotions and drinking for enhancement (or pleasure) were both associated with greater alcohol-related risk. These factors also appeared to mediate the relationship between poor mental health and risky drinking behaviours.
The findings sit alongside longstanding concerns about mental health within the profession, with high rates of poor mental health and suicide rates higher than the general population reported.
Yet despite growing awareness of mental health challenges, conversations about alcohol remain difficult.
"There is a huge difference between talking about drinking socially and talking about concerns about your drinking," says Olivia. "As soon as people cross that line, the topic can become heavily stigmatised."
Though not limited to veterinary professionals, part of the problem lies in persistent stereotypes surrounding alcohol dependence, increasing stigma which makes it harder to recognise harmful drinking patterns for many.
Alongside external stigma, the research points to powerful internal pressures. Feelings of shame, self-criticism and fear of judgement have been identified as barriers to seeking help.
These concerns can be particularly acute within professions built around responsibility and trust.
"There is often a fear that seeking help could affect someone's career," Olivia explains. "Whether or not that fear is justified, it can stop people coming forward."
The challenge now is understanding how support systems can be improved. While medicine has developed dedicated practitioner support programmes that offer confidential services for doctors and dentists, equivalent provision within veterinary medicine remains more limited. Existing veterinary support services provide valuable assistance, but questions remain about accessibility, funding and whether professionals feel comfortable using them.
Olivia's PhD aims to explore these issues in greater depth. Through interviews with veterinary professionals and support providers, she hopes to identify the barriers that prevent people accessing help and the interventions most likely to make a difference. For her, success is not measured solely in statistics.
"If one person feels less isolated, less stigmatised and is able to get support because of this work, then that's a success," she says.
The research highlights a broader question that extends far beyond veterinary medicine: how society supports those working in caring professions or positions of responsibility.