Seeing More, Stressing Less: How POCUS Supports Vet Wellbeing

Veterinary medicine is incredibly rewarding — but the emotional load can be high. I have had my own share of sleepless nights. Wondering if I missed something or was there something else I could have done. Every day, clinicians juggle uncertainty: limited diagnostic information, anxious owners, and the pressure to make the right call. That uncertainty is a major driver of stress and decision fatigue.

How POCUS Changes the Game

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) quietly transforms how we work. It doesn’t replace full diagnostics, but it gives immediate, actionable answers:

• Is there free fluid? Is there pneumoperitoneum?

• Is there a pneumothorax? Is there lung pathology?

• Is there pericardial effusion? Is there an enlarged LA:Ao?

Clinically driven questions like these cut through doubt and restore a sense of control in chaotic situations. Diagnostic confidence increases by 89.2% when GP's add POCUS to their evaluation. Seeing inside the patient in real time doesn’t just improve care — it calms the clinician.

Certainty Reduces Anxiety

Uncertainty fuels anxiety. Certainty, even partial, brings relief. A clear scan stops the spiral of “what if.” Decisions are based on data, not guesswork, and the emotional toll of wondering if something was missed eases — replaced by quiet confidence.

Building Trust With Owners

A 2024 mixed-methods study in human hospitals described what the authors called a “POCUS positive care effect (PPCE)”—the idea that bedside ultrasound plus explanation and interaction can create socioemotional benefits for patients. In that study, POCUS encounters were linked with higher satisfaction with providers and care overall, and a stronger sense that care was efficient.

More Than a Tool

POCUS isn’t just a diagnostic aid. It improves care, shrinks uncertainty, and eases the mental strain of decision-making. It also helps build trust with owners at moments when communication matters most. In a profession where the emotional load is already high, tools that reliably narrow the grey zone become part of how we look after ourselves — not just our patients.

Reference

Balmuth EA, et al. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS): Assessing patient satisfaction and socioemotional benefits in the hospital setting. PLOS ONE (2024). PLOS