Association between euthanasia despite perceived therapeutic alternatives and burnout syndrome among Spanish veterinarians.

BACKGROUND

Veterinary professionals are frequently exposed to emotionally demanding situations that may contribute to burnout syndrome. Performing euthanasia despite perceiving viable therapeutic alternatives may generate ethical conflict and psychological burden, yet evidence from Spain is limited.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the association between euthanasia performed despite perceived therapeutic alternatives and burnout syndrome among Spanish veterinarians, and to explore differences by sex and field of clinical practice.

METHODS

A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among 282 practicing veterinarians in Spain. Participants completed a questionnaire including sociodemographic and professional variables, euthanasia-related experiences, and the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS). Burnout was defined using established MBI-HSS criteria. Group comparisons were performed with independent-samples t-tests and chi-square tests, and crude odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.

RESULTS

Burnout syndrome was identified in 65 participants (23.0%). Overall, 198 veterinarians (70.2%) reported having performed euthanasia despite perceiving viable therapeutic alternatives. These respondents showed higher Emotional Exhaustion (29.96 ± 11.55 vs. 26.57 ± 11.49; p = 0.025) and Depersonalization scores (14.20 ± 5.27 vs. 12.76 ± 5.09; p = 0.034), although burnout prevalence did not differ significantly (25.3% vs. 17.9%; OR = 1.55, 95% CI: 0.81-2.95). Economic constraints were the most commonly reported reason among respondents reporting euthanasia despite perceived alternatives. Burnout was more frequent among small animal than large animal veterinarians (31.2% vs. 12.8%; OR = 3.09, 95% CI: 1.64-5.82).

CONCLUSIONS

Ethically challenging euthanasia-related experiences were associated with greater emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. Financial constraints may contribute to moral distress and burnout, warranting longitudinal studies to clarify these relationships.