Ethnic or cultural discrimination; poor levels of pay; restricted access to finance and to key medicines and the huge geographic areas they have to cover are just some of the challenges facing companion animal veterinarians in Africa. They were discussed, for the first time, at a round table during the first African Small Companion Animal Network (AFSCAN) Congress, which took place online between 29 June and 2 July 2021.
AFSCAN, an initiative from the WSAVA Foundation, is advancing standards of companion animal veterinary care across Africa through education and through supporting the creation of a sustainable network of companion animal veterinarians, associations and specialist groups in Sub-Saharan Africa. Its work is generously supported by Zoetis.
Derick Chibeu, a practitioner from Kenya, WSAVA Member Representative for the Kenya Small and Companion Animal Veterinary Association (KESCAVA), and Co-Chair of the PWG, chaired the round table. He says: “It was a remarkable discussion and showed a commonality of experience when it comes to the wellness of members of the profession in Africa. It is clearly a problem that affects many of us but there simply hadn’t been a forum in which to discuss it until the round table.
“Now that this issue is finally out in the open, we must work hard to come up with positive solutions. The PWG is already working on a set of WSAVA Global Guidelines on Veterinary Wellness and we hope, as part of this, to produce specific resources and tools to support colleagues in Africa, who face many unique challenges.”
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The work of the WSAVA Professional Wellness Group is kindly supported by Hill’s Pet Nutrition.