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. 

 AABP members can listen to Roman-Muniz’s conference presentation on the BCI CE portal when the recorded sessions are available. We also encourage anyone interested in this topic to review the resources on the AABP Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee page. If you are interested in joining the DEI committee, click on the email committee link from that page. AABP members can also advance their Spanish-language skills for communicating with farm workers in a practical setting by taking part in our free Spanish language webinar series. Two webinars are available on the BCI CE portal and more will be offered in the future. Find the AABP webinar schedule under the "Members" menu of the AABP website.