Get Help Now

  • 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

    Is a national network of local crisis centers that provides free and confidential emotional support to people in a suicidal crisis or emotional distress.

    Available 24/7 anywhere in the US.

    Text or Call: 988 — Dial 0 for IMMEDIATE help.

  • Quest Counseling

    FOR IN CRISIS ONLY

    Provides 24/7 crisis management for anyone experiencing a mental health crisis and/or substance abuse.

    They will talk to you on the phone and, if needed, will schedule you an in person therapy session with them.

    Dial: 775-786-6880

Click the button below of the area you live in for Helpers of the Community resources. These lists are provided by Nevada’s Office of Suicide Prevention, Department of Health and Human Services.

Help Others Now

Click the underlined title of the section for the link to the resource.

QPR Training

QPR: Question, Persuade, Refer.

This is an hour long, online training course. It is a great introduction into spotting those who. may be struggling with thoughts of suicide and how to talk to them about it. The link is through the AVMA website. Use their code to get the training for free (for 3 years): AVMA-OPEN

*Scroll down to “Start now: Create your free account”. Click on “Sign up here”. This will take you to the QPR Institute website. Or to go straight to the source click here.

SafeTALK

Recommended by trainers as a way to dip your toes into this topic. SafeTALK is provided by our state government. Training is free. SafeTALK is similar to QPR training but it is an in person, 3-4 hour training session. Training is held locally, location differs. This training will teach you how to recognize people who have thoughts of suicide, how to speak to them about it, and how to get them help.

*Scroll down to “TicketLeap” and select Northern or Southern Nevada to see training sessions near you.

ASIST

ASIST is provided by our state government. Training is free. It is a 2 day training course, all day. You will learn how to recognize when someone may have thoughts of suicide and work with them to create a plan that will support their immediate safety. You will also learn how to provide guidance and suicide first aid to a person at risk in ways that meet their individual safety needs, along with other tools/skills to help those who need it.

*Scroll down to “TicketLeap” and select Northern or Southern Nevada to see training sessions near you.

Feel free to download/print any of these resources/PDFs for you or your clinic. If you want posters made for your clinic you can download our designs below or email us to ask us about printing them for you. We can print a poster with or without your clinic’s logo on it.

More Resources for You

Articles about Veterinary Mental Health

This is just a start to some of the many articles we’ve read in doing research on this topic. Topics include: Mental Health, Burnout, Suicide, Compassion Fatigue, etc.

Things to Listen to…

Revive Vet Med by Dr. Marie Holowaychuk, DVM

The Facts.

1 in 6 veterinarians consider suicide.

Studies show those in the veterinary field have a higher risk of suicide than the general public. In fact, it’s 4 times higher than the general population. More than 2 times higher than the human medical profession. About 70% of veterinarians have had a colleague or peer die by suicide. 1/3 of veterinarians and 1/2 of veterinary staff experience burnout.

—Male veterinarians are 1.6x more likely 

—Female veterinarians are 2.4x more likely 

—Male technicians are 5x more likely 

—Female technicians are 2.3x more likely

For every veterinarian lost, approximately 3,500 pets lose their doctor.

The veterinary field already has a significant staffing shortage (veterinarians and support staff). This shortage is caused by a variety of factors: an increase in pet ownership, a lack of veterinary school enrollment, lack of veterinary technician enrollment, staff changing careers, and/or fatigue as well as mental health concerns among veterinary professionals.

Each veterinarian treats about 3,500 pets per year. Losing one veterinarian means the stress of treating those patients trickles down to others, causing more stress and fatigue. Nevada is ranked 5th in having the most devoted dog owners. There are ~690 veterinarians in Nevada, ~630 of them work either in Las Vegas or Reno. Other states have thousands of veterinarians.

Most cases are not “attempted” suicide.

The high numbers can be attributed to various factors. One reason is the easy access that veterinary professionals have to the drugs required for ending their lives. Additionally, their extensive medical knowledge enables them to take such actions. Despite their deep compassion for every patient they treat, many veterinary professionals experience compassion fatigue, leading to stress and an unhealthy balance between work and personal life.

Knowledge on how to help them saves lives.

Increasing awareness of the signs of burnout, compassion fatigue, or suicidal contemplation, and providing access to the necessary support can significantly reduce the incidence of suicide attempts in our community. Many individuals are simply experiencing stress and could benefit greatly from someone who will listen to them. Your willingness to lend an ear could potentially save a life.

Nevada is 12th in the nation for suicides.

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