Implementation of a Therapy Dog Program to Support Clinician Mental Health and Well-being

This workshop will describe the administrative and regulatory planning, as well as the development, structure, and expansion of Buckeye Paws™, a therapy dog program targeted to support the mental health and well-being of staff, faculty, and students at the Wexner Medical Center and The Ohio State University.

Objectives:

• Describe the evidence to support the beneficial presence of highly trained therapy dogs in medical and educational organizations.
• Detail the processes used to ensure administrative approval and regulatory compliance for the therapy dog program in an academic medical center and a university campus. 
• Describe the program structure to support safety of patients, family members, provider staff, students, and therapy dogs in an academic medical center and a university campus.
• Describe preliminary outcomes of the therapy dog program on clinician stress, burnout, mood, and work engagement.