By caring for animals, we also take care of people.
Nowhere has this been as clear as in this pandemic, when our pets are an important source of comfort for many of us. Pets get us out to exercise, provide companionship, lower stress, and are dependent on us. Many people are more proactive about seeking health care for their animals than they would be for themselves.
So it is problematic that the barriers for accessing care (both human and animal)—distance, lack of transportation, cost, and mistrust of health systems—can result in a lack of preventative care and delay in treating illness.
The College of Veterinary Medicine has two remarkable outreach programs that help remove these barriers by providing low-income and Native American communities with pet care. These mobile health initiatives, Veterinary Treatment Outreach for Urban Community Health (VeTouch) and Student Initiative for Reservation Veterinary Services (SIRVS), are student- and faculty-run programs. By developing relationships with the communities they serve, they create bridges that bring the expertise and resources of the University to people and animals that need it.
Today’s video features Dr. George Ormondi discussing the complex and inextricable links between animal and human health through factors like disease transmission, mental health, and the food chain. Keeping animals healthy has a direct impact on public health.
Under the excellent leadership of Interim Dean Laura Molgaard, and with the contributions of many faculty, staff and students, the College of Veterinary Medicine not only looks after the health of animals, but takes into account their unique and complicated relationships with humans. This gives all of us the opportunity to explore interprofessional health care, education, and research in the context of their knowledge and experience.
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