ONLINE WELLNESS HOUR FOR VETERINARY PROFESSIONALS
Overview:
What: One-hour sessions focused on understanding and addressing Stress, Burnout, and Compassion Fatigue in the veterinary professions.
When: Saturdays at 12 noon EASTERN
Where: Online via Zoom
Cost: Free
Registration: limited to a maximum of 24 participants per session.
Presenter: Judith Pinto, B.Sc.(Zoology), B.Sc.OT, Reg.OT(AB), OT – Sask. Ext’d Access Member
Program Description:
This is a series of 4 one-hour sessions offered on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd. & 4th Saturdays of each month (except December 2025), starting July 2025 until the end of June 2026.
Each week, we’ll explore the similarities and differences between Stress, Burnout, and Compassion Fatigue and explore strategies to prevent, manage, and address their impacts using different lenses:
Week 1. The Person-Environment-Occupation-Performance model of occupational therapy (how context impacts individual’s “functional performance”),
Week 2. The Individualized Zone of Optimal Functioning model (very much related to flow states!) and achieving peak performance,
Week 3. PolyVagal Theory and the power of the experience of safety to enable peak performance in self and others, and
Week 4. Sensory Processing and how understanding and meeting our sensory needs can help regulate stress to prevent burnout and compassion fatigue.
There is one CEC per webinar for OAVT RVTs.
If participants attend all four sessions, they will have had exposure to a variety of perspectives on stress, burnout, and compassion fatigue and be more able to find one that resonates best for them as they begin to address the impact these challenges have on their daily life. While the four sessions do NOT build on knowledge from previous sessions (they can be attended in any sequence), attending all four sessions will help participants develop a more fulsome understanding of ways to intentionally engage in deep self care to support their wellbeing and functioning at work and in life.
Each session will begin with a lecture component followed by a learning activity to help embed learning. There will be time at the end of each session for questions* focused on the topic of the day (or other topics in the series).
If participants attend all four sessions, they will begin to develop:
– an understanding of the similarities and differences between stress, burnout, and compassion fatigue
– an understanding of the difference between “good” and “bad” stress and its impact on functioning at work and in daily life
– a simple, personal toolkit to meet their needs to effectively and intentionally manage work related stress and prevent burnout and compassion fatigue
*Note that, in a group educational context, individualized recommendations cannot be offered.
Registration Process:
Participants can register for each session individually using the links in Showpass (a Canadian, PIPEDA compliant “event promotion” site). Completion of the form on Showpass is needed to ensure that participants are attending from jurisdictions that the presenter is licensed to offer virtual services to (all Canadian provinces and territories, EXCEPT Quebec). The secure Zoom (for healthcare) link will be sent to those who have registered for the session about 1 hour prior to the start of the session to ensure that the link is near the top of your email inbox. The Zoom waiting room will be set up/open 15 minutes prior to the start of the session. Registered participants will be admitted at 12 noon Eastern.
About the presenter:
This series is offered by Judith Pinto, B.Sc.(Zoology), B.Sc.OT, Reg.OT(AB), OT – Sask. Ext’d Access Member
Judith is a registered occupational therapist in Alberta and has been in practice for over 30 years. Her current private practice focuses on providing holistic mental health services to adults who struggle due to difficulties with with focus/attention, emotion regulation, stress/anxiety, and burnout. She uses an integrated approach including psychoeducation, brain-based meditation practices, sensory processing, polyvagal theory, executive function coaching, emotionally focused individual therapy, Kalffian/Jungian sandplay therapy, lifestyle design, and play and creative activities. Judith is grateful to live, work, and play on Treaty 6 territory (Edmonton, Alberta) and is registered with the Alberta College of Occupational Therapists. She also holds an Extended Access Member License with the Saskatchewan College of Occupational Therapy and is a Level 2 NeuroMeditation Instructor and Sandplay Therapy Intern.