Establishing a working definition for veterinary care desert

OBJECTIVE To develop a formal definition of veterinary care deserts as guidance for veterinary and animal welfare professionals to easily identify areas with limited access to veterinary care that can be targeted with expansion or implementation of programs and services.

SAMPLE 52 sources relating to veterinary care and 55 sources relating to human resource deserts were reviewed for themes and parameters relating to resource desert definitions and barriers to care. Of these, 37 veterinary and 42 human sources were included to inform the themes and parameters for our definition.

METHODS We performed a scoping literature review with a focus on veterinary care barriers and definitions of human resource deserts.

RESULTS The review identified 3 common themes of accessibility (transportation; distance to resource), affordability (owner income or poverty level; cost of care), and availability (density of professionals) that were incorporated into the definition of a veterinary care desert and parameterized at the level of census tracts. A working definition for veterinary care deserts was established as a geographic area where accessible, affordable, and available veterinary care is limited.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE By consulting publicly available census tract data on accessibility, affordability, and availability, veterinary care providers and organizations can use this definition to identify areas most likely to be experiencing reduced access to veterinary care and target interventions accordingly.

Keywords: animal welfare, human-animal bond, one health, access to care, veterinary care desert