228 Georgia veterinarians participated in a survey by the Stanton Foundation (and received Amazon gift cards) on the impact of finances on patient care. The goal of the survey is to identify conditions and treatment options which are most impacted by client finances to find solutions which will help Georgia pets in need.
I. Overview of Preliminary Survey Results – Georgia
The following tables show the top 5 conditions/diseases/medication classes by mean rating for each question, as of Nov. 30.
| Scoring Key | |
| Very Frequently | 4 |
| Frequently | 3 |
| Occasionally | 2 |
| Rarely | 1 |
| N/A | 0 |
Question 1: “Conditions Leading to Economic Euthanasia”
| Conditions/Diseases | Mean |
| Cancer | 3.118 |
| Chronic Kidney Disease | 2.623 |
| Major Trauma | 2.439 |
| Behavioral Issues | 2.434 |
| Heart Disease | 2.316 |
Question 2: “For which medication classes do you prescribe differently due to client’s financial situation?”
| Conditions/Diseases | Mean |
| Atopic Medications | 2.636 |
| Antibiotics | 2.404 |
| Anti-inflammatory | 2.228 |
| Analgesics | 2.013 |
| Cardiac Drugs | 1.991 |
*Note on Question 2: When analyzing trends in the data for Question 2: “Medications” it is important to recognize the specific wording of the question. The question asks when does the participant “prescribe differently due to the clients’ financial limitations.” This means for medication classes with few substitutes (e.g. monoclonal antibodies and chemotherapy drugs) the high number of ‘N/A’ scores corresponds with a low overall mean since we consider an N/A as a zero.
Question 3: “Conditions for which referral is declined for financial reasons?”
| Conditions/Diseases | Mean |
| Cancer | 3.044 |
| Behavioral Issues | 2.794 |
| Cataracts | 2.702 |
| Intervertebral Disc Disease | 2.588 |
| Atopy | 2.504 |
Bottom 25% of Respondents by Median Household Income[1] – Georgia
[1] Median Household Income is determined by the Zip code of their practice using 2018 census data.
Question 1: “Conditions Leading to Economic Euthanasia”
| Conditions/Diseases | Frequently % |
| Cancer | 79% |
| Major Trauma | 64% |
| Chronic Kidney Disease | 57% |
| Heart Disease | 46% |
| Osteoarthritis | 46% |
| Fractures Requiring Surgical Int. | 45% |
| Parvovirus | 43% |
| Behavioral Issues | 41% |
Question 2: “For which medication classes do you prescribe differently due to client’s financial situation?”
| Conditions/Diseases | Frequently % |
| Atopic Medications | 66% |
| Antibiotics | 48% |
| Anti-inflammatory | 41% |
Question 3: “Conditions for which referral is declined for financial reasons”
| Conditions/Diseases | Frequently % |
| Cancer | 80% |
| Behavioral Issues | 66% |
| Fractures Requiring Surgical Int. | 64% |
| Cataracts | 64% |
| Intervertebral Disc Disease | 64% |
| Cranial Cruciate Injury | 63% |
| Major Trauma | 61% |
| Heart Disease | 54% |
| Atopy | 52% |
| Seizures | 50% |
| Chronic Gastrointestinal Disease | 50% |
| Cushing’s Disease | 48% |
| Chronic Kidney Disease | 46% |
| Immune Mediated Blood Diseases | 45% |
| Parvovirus | 43% |
| Addison’s Disease | 41% |
The table below shows the overlap in conditions/diseases from the Question 1 and Question 3 tables above. These 7 conditions represent the conditions that most frequently create cost barriers to clients living in areas with the lowest median household incomes.
| Conditions/Diseases |
| Cancer |
| Major Trauma |
| Chronic Kidney Disease |
| Heart Disease |
| Fractures Requiring Surgical Intervention |
| Parvovirus |
| Behavioral Issues |
II. Survey Respondents
Survey Distribution by Zip code of Respondents’ Practice – Georgia
III. Appendix
a. Survey Questions
Question 1: “Conditions Leading to Economic Euthanasia”
How often do you encounter each of the following common canine conditions that are likely to result in “economic euthanasia” due to the clients’ financial limitations?
Question 2: “For which medication classes do you prescribe differently due to client’s financial situation?”
How often do you prescribe differently due to the clients’ financial limitations, for each of the following medication classes?
Question 3: “Conditions for which referral is declined for financial reasons”
For the following canine conditions, please rate how frequently clients decline a referral due to financial limitations.
b. Conditions/Diseases/Medication Classes Word Bank
Conditions/Diseases
• Addison’s Disease
• Atopy
• Behavioral Issues
• Cancer
• Cataracts
• Chronic Gastrointestinal Disease
• Chronic Kidney Disease
• Cranial Cruciate Injury
• Cushing’s Disease
• Dental Disease
• Diabetes Mellitus
• Diarrhea
• Ear Infections
• External Parasites
• Fractures Requiring Surgical Intervention
• Heart Disease
• Heartworm
• Immune Mediated Blood Disease
• Intervertebral Disc Disease
• Kennel Cough
• Major Trauma
• Obesity
• Osteoarthritis
• Parvovirus
• Pyometra
• Seizures
• Skin Diseases
• Urinary Tract Infections
• Urolithiasis
Medication Classes
• Analgesics
• Anti Inflammatories
• Anti Parasitics
• Antibiotics
• Antifungals
• Atopic Medications
• Cardiac Drugs
• Chemotherapy Drugs
• Immunosuppressives
• Monoclonal Antibodies
