February 15, 2021

Dr. Douglas Kratt assumed the AVMA presidency last July at a time of national crisis.

The country was several months into a lockdown necessitated by the novel coronavirus spreading across the world. At the same time, U.S. cities were roiled by protests sparked by the death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man killed by Minneapolis police in May, forcing every aspect of American society to reckon with its role in perpetuating systemic racial and social injustice.

Dr. Kratt talked to JAVMA News about his time as AVMA president, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the AVMA’s reckoning with its position as the professional association for the least-diverse health care profession in the country.

Q. It’s an understatement to say you became AVMA president at a very interesting time.

A. It’s been a very interesting time to be president of the AVMA, but as I said when I was campaigning, the presidency isn’t about me, it’s about the 96,500 AVMA members I serve. Yes, there are challenges. It’s difficult to genuinely connect with people at a state or regional VMA meeting via Zoom. I miss those conversations you have during the breaks—answering questions face to face and explaining AVMA policies and strategy.

There have been a few silver linings. If I were traveling, I would probably attend as many as two meetings a week. Since I’m not on the road, I can have four Zoom calls in a day. It’s a different kind of communication than I’m used to, but the information exchange is far greater and faster than it would be otherwise. Are there things that I would have loved to accomplish if I had had enough bandwidth? Absolutely. Veterinary student debt, starting salaries, and well-being are incredibly important issues to me, but the more pressing issues of COVID and social justice are the priority.

Q. How have the coronavirus pandemic and Black Lives Matter movement impacted your agenda as AVMA president?

A. The civil unrest rightly shifted my focus to diversity, equity, and inclusion within the veterinary profession, AVMA, and my own life. I’m often asked, “Why are we the least diverse profession in the country?” I don’t deny that we are, and we’re looking much more intentionally at the AVMA with respect to DEI. The AVMA has hired external experts to amp up our efforts internally. We’re also working closely with the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges on the Commission for a Diverse, Equitable, and Inclusive Veterinary Profession, co-chaired by Drs. Christine Jenkins, chief veterinary officer for Zoetis, and Ruby Perry, dean of Tuskegee University’s veterinary college.

It won’t be a short-term effort or a quick fix; this is going to be a sustained effort, and we’re not going to fix it in six months or a year. It’s a problem we must address on multiple levels. I need to address it as Doug Kratt. Do I have implicit bias? Am I dissuading people of color from joining the profession in ways that I don’t know about? What about at my clinic? Am I searching for a diverse employment base? Am I making POC (people of color) feel unwelcome at my practice without knowing it?

What about at the professional level? Are we putting up barriers there as well? (See story.) I truthfully believe that the vast majority of them are unintentional barriers. My personal belief is we need to start recruiting at the fifth-grade level. We know if we wait to reach out when they’re juniors and seniors in high school that our profession has already lost a bunch of great people. (President-elect) Dr. José Arce and I have discussed potentially starting pilot programs in urban areas that teach kids about our profession.

I understand that I don’t understand what people of color have gone through. I’m a white male who grew up in the Midwest, and I’m very sensitive to that.

AVMA President Douglas Kratt

Q. How would you describe your responsibilities as AVMA president for the first half of your term?

A. Part of my responsibility has been to be a calming voice. I listen to your concerns about the virus, then encourage you to take a deep breath, and say, “I’m a private practitioner, and I share your concerns.” Then I tell you about all the resources available from AVMA addressing those very concerns, whether it’s “What do I do if a staff member at my clinic has contracted COVID?” or “Are pets at risk?” or “Is the food supply safe?” As a profession, we’ve stepped up. We’ve gotten the information out; we’ve addressed the current concerns about COVID and put the public at ease.

I understand that I don’t understand what people of color have gone through. I’m a white male who grew up in the Midwest, and I’m very sensitive to that when I’m discussing DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion). Should I be the face of this discussion? That weighs on me, but we all need to be part of the solution.

Q. As you talk to veterinarians, are there any common themes?

A. I will tell you economics is universal. Zoonotic disease and disease transmission are universal. I’m not sure how many people recall that, prior to February of 2020, we had a foreign animal disease that was taking up a lot of bandwidth: African swine fever. All the challenges that were on our plate prior to 2020 didn’t just go away. My sales pitch is I’m very proud of AVMA. We’re a relatively small organization with limited resources, but we found another gear for COVID. We educated our members on how to stay safe and the public about the impacts on animals. In Washington, D.C., the AVMA was working on the Paycheck Protection Program. We were dealing with all of those issues simultaneously and also able to come up with guidance for telehealth and telemedicine.

Q. What can we expect the second half of your term to look like?

A. Part of it will be transitioning us back to a new normal. We’ve been dealing with this pandemic for over a year, and my hope is that we can help members figure out when is it safe to go back to something besides curbside. I also want to take the opportunity to encourage Washington to strengthen the one-health framework and veterinary diagnostic laboratory funding because, unfortunately, there is going to be another pandemic. I don’t like being a pessimist, but I’m being realistic. Veterinarians have shown our value during the COVID pandemic. Let’s go ahead, let’s sow the seeds and be prepared for the next time so we can be that step ahead.

Q. How do you hope to be remembered as AVMA president?

A. I hope not to be remembered as AVMA president. I’m joking but if I did my job, people will remember how AVMA responded during an incredibly difficult period both nationally and worldwide, not that Doug Kratt was president.