Have You Herd? AABP PodCast - Cultural Awareness for Veterinarians Working with LatinX Livestock Caretakers

February 28, 2023 — 

AABP has released a new Have You Herd? podcast episode, Cultural Awareness for Veterinarians Working with LatinX Livestock Caretakers.

This episode of Have You Herd? is guest hosted by Dr. Kendra Wells, a dairy veterinarian from northeastern Wisconsin. Wells was the dairy coordinator the 2023 6th AABP Recent Graduate Conference and was joined at the conference by Dr. Noa Roman-Muniz to follow-up from her presentation at the conference. Language differences can limit effectiveness of training but is not the primary challenge to effective communication. Our guests discuss tips for training and presenting to LatinX employees and how to recognize cultural differences that can be celebrated not as a limitation, but as an opportunity for making personal connections. Roman-Muniz suggests that veterinarians should attempt to use the Spanish that they know with farm employees and that they will be appreciative of your efforts even if you have limited Spanish-speaking skills. She suggests being open to correction and telling workers to help you when you make a mistake. Our guests also discuss the definitions of the terms LatinX and Hispanic.

Roman-Muniz also explains why "knowing the why" is important for workers in training, discussing euthanasia, and how this makes employees feel like they are a part of the team. Explaining and embracing the why in our training also is liberating for managers and owners, a lesson she learned from her dairy farmer father.

Listen to this episode directly at https://www.buzzsprout.com/814177/12285370, and search for other AABP Have You Herd? podcasts at https://www.buzzsprout.com/814177; listen on your favorite podcast platform.

Like AABP, AASV has a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee. They will meet March 4 during the AASV Annual Meeting. New committee members are welcome, and all AASV members can attend any committee meeting as an observer.