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That day Phil sat in a rainbow in my office. Truth is, animals really don't care whether you're LGBTQI, straight or non-identifying. Another reason we love them. |
What does Australia’s marriage equality debate have to do
with veterinarians? A lot, it seems. We’ve been contacted by people who have
been hurt by comments made on social media over recent weeks so we thought we
should post about this.
Veterinarians are Homo
sapiens, i.e. just as human as everyone else (though it would be possibly
hugely advantageous to be part non-human, as it may give us greater
understanding of our patients. We digress).
Not all humans are heterosexual, but all of them have
feelings. We know that veterinarians, as professionals, struggle with a higher
rate of suicide and mental health issues than many other groups. Unfortunately,
LGBTQI and other non-heterosexual identifying persons also struggle with the
same. LGBTQI veterinarians have a double whammy. And yet, we’re all people.
Struggling with the same issues. Doing our very best to help our patients,
looking after the health of animals and the people they interact with. Imagine
having to justify your identity on top of that, to people whose business it
probably isn’t anyway.
The distress is out there, its real, and its having an
impact on some very dedicated vets, nurses, groomers, kennel-hands,
receptionists, practice managers, couriers, specialists and others (including
clients of veterinary services) who just want to provide great care and be
accepted for who they are.
Given what we’ve heard recently, we wanted to remind
everyone that its okay to seek support. If the recent discussion has upset you,
it’s okay to talk about it and there are some great resources.
The Australian Veterinary Association provides a free,
24-hour counselling service to members.
All Australian universities provide student services
which offer counselling and referral (usually at no cost to students). In
addition, many Australian universities have rolled out Ally training for
LGBTQI-friendly staff to promote a welcoming, safe and supportive environment,
promote a stronger and more inclusive community and to challenge homophobia and
homophobic attitudes and behaviours.
For example, you can see the University of Sydney’s
information about the Ally Network here. http://sydney.edu.au/about-us/vision-and-values/diversity/ally-network.html
QLife is
Australia’s first nationally-oriented counselling and referral service for
people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and/or intersex (LGBTI). It
provides phone 1800 184 527 and online counselling from 3pm-midnight and online
resources at https://qlife.org.au/
VetLife is a UK
based charity providing a confidential hotline but also a range of information
resources on the website https://www.vetlife.org.uk/
Mensline is a
telephone and online support and information service for Australian men (24
hours) 1300 789 978. https://www.mensline.org.au/
There are also associations you can join or communicate
with, including the Lesbian and Gay Veterinary Medical Association in the US (http://www.lgvma.org/) and the British
Veterinary LGBT+ group (https://www.bvlgbt.co.uk/)
in the UK.
At SAT we believe everyone deserves respect, that
diversity is one of the coolest things about being a person, and that the world
is better the more we can minimise the hurting and promote the well-being of animals
AND humans. Isn’t that what being a
vet is all about?
For this reason, we support our LGBTQI colleagues. Please
look out for your colleagues (and yourselves), some of whom might need a bit of
extra time, a cuppa, or even a word of support.
UPDATE: Kate sent us a link for the Gender Centre in Sydney. Check it out here: https://gendercentre.org.au/
UPDATE: SAT reader Anthony shared this fantastic resource from ACON. You can download it here:
http://www.acon.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Staying-Strong-Tips.jpg
UPDATE: Kate sent us a link for the Gender Centre in Sydney. Check it out here: https://gendercentre.org.au/
UPDATE: SAT reader Anthony shared this fantastic resource from ACON. You can download it here:
http://www.acon.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Staying-Strong-Tips.jpg
And if you know of any other support groups, please drop
us a line so we can share it.