Veterinarians to stage work stoppage protest

ANKARA 

Veterinarians are set to stage a work stoppage protest to draw attention to the violence faced by vets and their exclusion from anti-violence regulations applied for healthcare workers.

After a woman assaulted veterinarian Ceren Eroğlu, whom she blamed for the death of her cat, in the capital Ankara on Aug. 3, a large number of vets reacted to the incident, citing that they are not recognized as healthcare workers and, therefore, they are excluded from protection laws.

In accordance with a decision by the Turkish Veterinary Medical Association, veterinary doctors across Türkiye are set to participate in a work stoppage on Aug. 21, while the protest is expected to witness an intense participation.

Ahmet Baydın, the head of the Ankara Veterinary Medical Chamber, stated there is a common misconception that veterinarians are solely engaged in animal health.

Noting that consequently, they are not covered by the "Violence in Healthcare Law,” Baydın emphasized that this exclusion leaves veterinarians isolated and without solutions when they face incidents of violence.

"Veterinarians are a professional group that actively deal with both public health, environmental health and animal health. There are hundreds of diseases transmitted from animals to humans. Veterinarians take an active role in combating and controlling these diseases. Despite all this, veterinarians are not classified as health professionals," Baydın told daily Milliyet.

Baydın further mentioned that in many countries, all healthcare workers, including dentists and veterinarians, are considered concrete parts of the sector.

Regarding the work stoppage, Baydın assured that urgent cases involving animals, such as traffic accidents, injuries, or births, will still be treated during the protest.