One Health

Dr. @Michael Blackwell, this is a powerful and necessary call to action-thank you for continuing to elevate the role of veterinarians as essential to family and public health.

To every veterinarian reading this: thank you. You are protecting not only animal health, but the stability, mental well-being, and resilience of the people who love and depend on those animals. You are on the frontlines of preventing zoonotic diseases, strengthening communities, and safeguarding the human–animal bond that so many families rely on every day.

And just as strongly-please remember to care for yourselves.

The demands of this work are real: emotional strain, workforce shortages, financial pressures, and the weight of being the safety net when systems fall short. Sustaining a One Health future depends on sustaining the people doing the work. Prioritizing your own mental health, setting boundaries, leaning on peer support, and accessing professional resources is not optional-it is foundational to the longevity of this field.

If you or a colleague need support, there are trusted, veterinary-specific resources available:

• Not One More Vet (NOMV): peer support, grants, and crisis resources for veterinary professionals
• American Veterinary Medical Association wellbeing resources: tools, assessments, and support pathways
• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988 for immediate, confidential support (U.S.)
  
  

We cannot build integrated, resilient health systems without veterinarians-and we cannot support veterinarians without ensuring they are supported as people first.

Deep gratitude for all that you do-for pets, for people, and for the communities you hold together every day.

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T' Fisher, Director of Operations
Center for Pet Family Well-Being
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-25-2026 09:39 AM
From: Michael Blackwell
Subject: Veterinarians Are Family Healthcare Professionals

Throughout my life, veterinary medicine has been more than a family legacy. It is a crucial pillar of family and public health. As the definition of "family" has evolved, it is clear: veterinarians are essential healthcare professionals. They are as vital to household well-being as those who care for human family members.  

Two out of three U.S. households include pets. More than 95% of pet owners consider them family members. For some-especially among Gen Z-a pet may be their primary or only family member. Pets can also be the most consistent source of companionship and emotional support. That is not a cultural footnote; it is a public health reality. When a family's pet is sick and they cannot access care, the entire household suffers. When veterinarians keep animals healthy, they safeguard families.  

 

Veterinarians are frontline professionals in preventing pandemics before they start. They stand between zoonotic diseases and human populations, protect food systems, respond to disasters, and monitor environmental conditions. These conditions determine whether communities thrive or falter. Sixty percent of known human infectious diseases are zoonotic. The next major threat will likely arise at the intersection of human, animal, and environmental health. This threat is not hypothetical. It is the daily work of veterinary medicine.  

 

Yet veterinary perspectives remain underrepresented in public health policy. For example, veterinarians are often absent from health planning tables and family health benefit frameworks. They are excluded from family health models and often disconnected from the larger systems they serve. We cannot build resilient health systems if we treat veterinary care as separate from family well-being.  

 

One Health demands better. It asks us to design systems where veterinarians, physicians, environmental scientists, social workers, and community leaders work together. They should not operate in parallel; they should operate as a team. Access to veterinary care should be a determinant of family and community health. The human–animal bond is not a luxury; it is a foundation.  

 

This World Veterinary Day, I am not simply honoring a profession. I am calling on every sector in this community to take specific action. Invite veterinary professionals to your family health discussions, such as hospital community benefit plans, local health boards, disaster preparedness exercises, and social services programs. Build cross-disciplinary partnerships. Advocate for policies that add veterinary services and animal health data to community health systems. Your leadership can help make veterinary care a core part of family and community health.  

 

The health of people, pets, and our shared environment is inseparable. Our systems must recognize veterinarians as central to family and community health.
-------------------------------------------


------------------------------
Michael J Blackwell, DVM, MPH, FNAP
Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS (Ret.)
Director, Program for Pet Health Equity
Center for Behavioral Health Research
https://pphe.utk.edu
------------------------------

Beautifully stated, Dr. @Michael Blackwell. It's so important that we recognize and support the inextricable connection between human health and pet health. When people struggle, pets struggle - and vice versa. Thank you for your continued leadership in advancing One Health.

------------------------------
Romy Harness
Director of Access to Care Initiatives
Maddie's Fund
CA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 04-25-2026 09:39 AM
From: Michael Blackwell
Subject: Veterinarians Are Family Healthcare Professionals

Throughout my life, veterinary medicine has been more than a family legacy. It is a crucial pillar of family and public health. As the definition of "family" has evolved, it is clear: veterinarians are essential healthcare professionals. They are as vital to household well-being as those who care for human family members.  

Two out of three U.S. households include pets. More than 95% of pet owners consider them family members. For some-especially among Gen Z-a pet may be their primary or only family member. Pets can also be the most consistent source of companionship and emotional support. That is not a cultural footnote; it is a public health reality. When a family's pet is sick and they cannot access care, the entire household suffers. When veterinarians keep animals healthy, they safeguard families.  

 

Veterinarians are frontline professionals in preventing pandemics before they start. They stand between zoonotic diseases and human populations, protect food systems, respond to disasters, and monitor environmental conditions. These conditions determine whether communities thrive or falter. Sixty percent of known human infectious diseases are zoonotic. The next major threat will likely arise at the intersection of human, animal, and environmental health. This threat is not hypothetical. It is the daily work of veterinary medicine.  

 

Yet veterinary perspectives remain underrepresented in public health policy. For example, veterinarians are often absent from health planning tables and family health benefit frameworks. They are excluded from family health models and often disconnected from the larger systems they serve. We cannot build resilient health systems if we treat veterinary care as separate from family well-being.  

 

One Health demands better. It asks us to design systems where veterinarians, physicians, environmental scientists, social workers, and community leaders work together. They should not operate in parallel; they should operate as a team. Access to veterinary care should be a determinant of family and community health. The human–animal bond is not a luxury; it is a foundation.  

 

This World Veterinary Day, I am not simply honoring a profession. I am calling on every sector in this community to take specific action. Invite veterinary professionals to your family health discussions, such as hospital community benefit plans, local health boards, disaster preparedness exercises, and social services programs. Build cross-disciplinary partnerships. Advocate for policies that add veterinary services and animal health data to community health systems. Your leadership can help make veterinary care a core part of family and community health.  

 

The health of people, pets, and our shared environment is inseparable. Our systems must recognize veterinarians as central to family and community health.
-------------------------------------------


------------------------------
Michael J Blackwell, DVM, MPH, FNAP
Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS (Ret.)
Director, Program for Pet Health Equity
Center for Behavioral Health Research
https://pphe.utk.edu
------------------------------

We all appreciate the leadership and support from Maddie's Fund. 

------------------------------
Michael J Blackwell, DVM, MPH, FNAP
Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS (Ret.)
Director, Program for Pet Health Equity
Center for Behavioral Health Research
https://pphe.utk.edu
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 04-28-2026 10:41 AM
From: Romy Harness
Subject: Veterinarians Are Family Healthcare Professionals

Beautifully stated, Dr. @Michael Blackwell. It's so important that we recognize and support the inextricable connection between human health and pet health. When people struggle, pets struggle - and vice versa. Thank you for your continued leadership in advancing One Health.

------------------------------
Romy Harness
Director of Access to Care Initiatives
Maddie's Fund
CA

Original Message:
Sent: 04-25-2026 09:39 AM
From: Michael Blackwell
Subject: Veterinarians Are Family Healthcare Professionals

Throughout my life, veterinary medicine has been more than a family legacy. It is a crucial pillar of family and public health. As the definition of "family" has evolved, it is clear: veterinarians are essential healthcare professionals. They are as vital to household well-being as those who care for human family members.  

Two out of three U.S. households include pets. More than 95% of pet owners consider them family members. For some-especially among Gen Z-a pet may be their primary or only family member. Pets can also be the most consistent source of companionship and emotional support. That is not a cultural footnote; it is a public health reality. When a family's pet is sick and they cannot access care, the entire household suffers. When veterinarians keep animals healthy, they safeguard families.  

 

Veterinarians are frontline professionals in preventing pandemics before they start. They stand between zoonotic diseases and human populations, protect food systems, respond to disasters, and monitor environmental conditions. These conditions determine whether communities thrive or falter. Sixty percent of known human infectious diseases are zoonotic. The next major threat will likely arise at the intersection of human, animal, and environmental health. This threat is not hypothetical. It is the daily work of veterinary medicine.  

 

Yet veterinary perspectives remain underrepresented in public health policy. For example, veterinarians are often absent from health planning tables and family health benefit frameworks. They are excluded from family health models and often disconnected from the larger systems they serve. We cannot build resilient health systems if we treat veterinary care as separate from family well-being.  

 

One Health demands better. It asks us to design systems where veterinarians, physicians, environmental scientists, social workers, and community leaders work together. They should not operate in parallel; they should operate as a team. Access to veterinary care should be a determinant of family and community health. The human–animal bond is not a luxury; it is a foundation.  

 

This World Veterinary Day, I am not simply honoring a profession. I am calling on every sector in this community to take specific action. Invite veterinary professionals to your family health discussions, such as hospital community benefit plans, local health boards, disaster preparedness exercises, and social services programs. Build cross-disciplinary partnerships. Advocate for policies that add veterinary services and animal health data to community health systems. Your leadership can help make veterinary care a core part of family and community health.  

 

The health of people, pets, and our shared environment is inseparable. Our systems must recognize veterinarians as central to family and community health.
-------------------------------------------


------------------------------
Michael J Blackwell, DVM, MPH, FNAP
Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS (Ret.)
Director, Program for Pet Health Equity
Center for Behavioral Health Research
https://pphe.utk.edu
------------------------------