“Wellness is the quality or state of being healthy in body and mind, which can also be perceived as an approach to healthcare that emphasises preventing illness and prolonging life.”
Mental Health problems are seen as more and more common throughout the veterinary community each year. Seeing this situation is real, several students at the International Veterinary Students’ Association created the Standing Committee on Wellness (SCOW). Since then, this committee is devoted to improving the wellness of the people in the veterinary profession and aims to promote the self-improvement of mental and physical health in the veterinary society, including veterinary professionals and students alike.
Our Mission
- Help students identify stress factors by organising live and online events and disseminating information and resources.
- Create a safe community where everyone can express their thoughts freely and safely.
- Share materials on wellness topics that would inspire and promote a healthier lifestyle.
- Gather information and take action for bettering school environments, with regards to wellness.
- Keep students active and creative outside of the classroom.
Our Projects
Wellness Week
Wellness Week is the annual week-long tribute to students taking care of themselves. This project aims to promote wellness and have an international activity where all students can come together, live at their universities and online with the rest of the IVSA community while running wellness-related activities for a week.
Wellness Toolkit
The Wellness Toolkit is the “Playbook” of mental and physical well-being for all IVSA members. It contains materials, resources and every bamboozle to transform the stressed caterpillar students into wonderful vet butterflies.
Access Here
Mentor-Mentee Program
The IVSA Mentor-Mentee program aims to pair current veterinary students with practising veterinarians or last-year students to help foster a learning partnership. This partnership creates an open environment for the mentee to ask questions and advice from the mentor, who can provide honest feedback based on their unique perspective and experience.
Ambassadors
A Wellness Ambassador aims to encourage the spread of wellness and serve as the link between the Standing Committee on Wellness and every MO/chapter. This way, the committee can communicate with IVSA members directly and bridge the gap between SCOW and the IVSA members.
Tasks:
Relaying SCOW resources, initiatives, and events to their MOs and chapters.
Giving constructive feedback on SCOW events.
Continuously evaluate the wellness status on their campus, including notable changes or developments.
Inform SCOW of wellness-related issues faced within their MOs or chapters.
Join SCOW meetings and help develop activities, projects, and programs which can possibly be beneficial globally.
Our Team
