Veterinarians in Colorado are involved that a few of their purchasers could have deliberately harm their pets within the hopes of receiving prescription painkillers, based on a current survey performed by the Middle for Well being, Work & Atmosphere on the Colorado Faculty of Public Well being at CU Anschutz and a neighborhood veterinary affiliation.
Though veterinarians can prescribe highly effective medicine, their function in curbing the opioid epidemic has been largely missed. Researchers are calling for improved surveillance, extra analysis, and higher coaching in an editorial printed within the American Journal of Public Well being.
“The function veterinarians play in serving to scale back opioid abuse hasn’t been completely examined,” mentioned Lili Tenney, one of many lead investigators of the survey and the deputy director of the Middle for Well being, Work & Atmosphere. “Our outcomes point out that we ought to be paying extra consideration to how opioid abusers are looking for their medicine — together with by way of veterinary clinics. We need to see well being individuals and wholesome pets.”
Opioid diversion and misuse is an issue affecting everybody within the veterinary clinic — from workers to pet homeowners to pets themselves. Of the 189 veterinarians surveyed, 13% reported that that they had seen a consumer who they believed had purposefully injured a pet, made them unwell, or made them look like unwell. Near 45% of these surveyed knew of a pet proprietor or member of their crew who was abusing opioids; 12% acknowledged that had been conscious of a workers member diverting opioids or abusing them.
The Middle for Well being, Work & Atmosphere crew and the Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention are working to handle opioid misuse and animal abuse by educating veterinarians and their workers. Collectively, they designed an internet coaching that focuses on opioid prescription pointers and greatest practices for veterinarians.
