NOMV and MVMC Join Forces to Confront Cyberbullying
July 8, 2022
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA — In light of recent cyberbullying attacks targeting Maine Veterinary Medical Center, Not One More Vet, Inc. partnered with MVMC to create a resource for veterinary clinics that find themselves in a similar position.
NOMV was appalled to see the hateful rhetoric threatening the incredible veterinary professionals who fought tirelessly to save a puppy’s life despite a complex life threatening medical emergency. NOMV put out a public statement about the incident on their public social media pages on June 12th, 2022 which mentions, “Daily, a majority of veterinarians in the United States are faced with a pet owner who is not financially prepared for their pet’s medical care. That intersection of money and medicine is a stressful one for people on both sides of the exam table.”
MVMC is not alone in their experience with difficult cases. However, they became the unfortunate target of a very public cyberbullying attack, shining a spotlight on this issue which is more and more prevalent in the veterinary world.
Even while police were stationed outside of the hospital doors due to threats of violence they received because of the cyberbullying, MVMC, a member of Rarebreed Veterinary Partners, scheduled a meeting with NOMV to create industry wide cyberbullying resources. MVMC’s Dr. Meghan Vaught shared, “I am someone who needs to transform this experience into something positive, which is our next mission.”
Sarah Mills, Rarebreed’s Senior Director of Marketing & Communications, also mentioned an influx of support from the veterinary community and felt NOMV would be a perfect collaborator to develop a cyberbullying resource for the veterinary profession and the result of this initial conversation was a proposal for the NOMV Cyberbullying Task Force.
NOMV is now fundraising and to move their proposal forward. NOMV needs at least $34,000 to get the project started and will need ongoing support of at least $48,000 annually to sustain the program. Individuals and organizations interested in financially supporting the Cyberbullying Task Force are encouraged to donate to NOMV via PayPal. When doing so, please toggle the field marked “Use this donation for” to the option labeled “Cyberbullying Taskforce”. Checks can be mailed to PO Box 426656 San Francisco, CA 94142-6656. Please indicate in the notes section that the contribution is for the Cyberbullying Task Force so it is properly allocated.
The task force also requires volunteer people power and NOMV is requesting those with experience in public relations, veterinary cyberbullying, medical record privacy/ethics and laws, mental health, fundraising, reputation management, and/or marketing to apply via Idealist.
