Veterinary burnout gets a reframing in new dvm360 commentary

Veterinary burnout is the focus of a new dvm360 commentary that asks a pointed question: if the profession already knows burnout is widespread, why hasn’t all that awareness solved it? In the November 19, 2025, episode write-up, The Resilient Vet cohosts Aaron Shaw and Jennifer Edwards argue that the sticking point isn’t a lack of education, CE, or wellness messaging. Instead, they say, many veterinary professionals struggle to translate that knowledge into meaningful change because the motivation behind it is often external, vague, or disconnected from what matters most to them personally. (dvm360.com)

That framing builds on a long-running conversation in veterinary medicine. Over the past several years, the profession has invested heavily in wellbeing resources, from conference programming and self-care tools to workplace initiatives and mentorship models. AVMA and allied organizations have promoted workplace wellbeing programs for years, while AAHA’s Healthy Workplace Culture Initiative explicitly pushed the field to move beyond reacting to crisis and toward prevention through culture. The new dvm360 discussion fits into that broader shift by suggesting burnout is sustained not just by workload, but by the mismatch between what people think they “should” do and what they actually value. (avma.org)

In the partial transcript, Edwards describes a process of repeatedly drilling down on what someone truly wants, rather than stopping at socially reinforced goals such as looking a certain way or meeting outside expectations. Her examples center on concrete, personal motivations, like being active with children, enjoying nature, or maintaining physical ability later in life. Shaw and Edwards argue that this kind of clarity can make behavior change more durable, because it ties action to identity and purpose rather than guilt. dvm360’s summary of the episode says the real work is identifying a professional’s true “why,” recognizing what blocks it, and shifting from collecting information to taking personalized action. (dvm360.com)

The timing matters because burnout is still very much present in veterinary medicine, even if some measures show improvement from the height of the pandemic. AVMA’s 2025 report says burnout scores for associate veterinarians rose sharply in 2020 and have trended downward since, while scores for relief veterinarians have moved in the opposite direction after dropping in 2021. Separately, Merck Animal Health’s wellbeing work and related JAVMA research have continued to document links between burnout, mental health, and workplace conditions across both veterinarians and nonveterinarian team members. Together, those data points reinforce that burnout is not a solved problem, and that its drivers likely differ across roles and settings. (ebusiness.avma.org)

Industry commentary around wellbeing has also been moving toward systems thinking. Merck’s latest wellbeing messaging highlights evidence-based mentorship and support programs, including its backing of MentorVet and the AVMA-MentorVet Connect collaboration for new graduates. That doesn’t directly validate the podcast’s “find your why” framework, but it does support the broader idea that sustainable improvement may require more than one-off wellness reminders. It’s a reasonable inference that the field is placing more value on structured, ongoing support than on awareness campaigns alone. (merck-animal-health-usa.com)

Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, this story is less about a new dataset than about a shift in how burnout is being interpreted. If Shaw and Edwards are right, then practices may need to think beyond offering wellness resources and ask whether their culture, schedules, role design, and leadership behaviors actually make change possible. For clinicians and managers, that could mean more emphasis on coaching, clearer boundaries, individualized career sustainability plans, and team conversations that connect daily work to personal values. In a labor environment still shaped by shortages in some segments and persistent retention pressure, even small gains in durability and engagement could matter. (dvm360.com)

What to watch: The next question is whether this values-based framing stays mostly in the commentary space or starts showing up more concretely in CE, mentorship programs, and hospital management strategies across 2026. (dvm360.com)