Catherine Haskins has brought veterinary professionals together since 2017 through The Bridge Club networking group and more recently with connext.vet, a directory of upcoming conferences, CE events and industry thought leaders. The PR professional’s latest venture — self-funded to date — is much more personal. It’s called Project Sticker, a fledgling nonprofit that points website visitors to a wide array of mental health, wellness and career resources.
“In 2021, my nephew took his own life,” the founder said. “Since then, his mother has been on a mission to get messages to people before they reach a crisis — 75,000-plus stickers on laptops in Brevard County, Florida.”
Haskins wondered, “How can we get this into veterinary medicine?” Project Sticker arose from a 2024 meeting with Bridge Club team members Dr. Cheryl Good and Shannon Nowak and a second veterinary technician, Alyssa Mages.
The website stickwithus.vet links to nearly a dozen crisis lines, as well as all the free services and information provided by groups such as Not One More Vet, Vets4Vets, the Veterinary Hope Foundation, MentorVet and Pride VMC.
Coming soon, if she can raise enough money from grants and corporate donations, is a mobile app designed to help users assess their mental health privately and securely and find needed assistance. The app’s functions will be subject to a mental health expert’s review and approval.
“We will be able to ask questions with the push of a button,” Haskins said. “Did a pet owner not take your advice today? How many euthanasias did you do today? How many of them were for economic reasons? We will use an algorithm to weigh your day based on triggers.
“We also will communicate to you and say, ‘How are you doing? Do you need to talk to someone?’ If you’re great, fabulous! If you say, ‘I’m not doing well,’ we’ll get you immediately to 988 [a crisis hotline]. If you’re saying, ‘I’m OK but I’d like to start looking,’ we’ll direct you to support groups.”
Simply using the app will have an additional payoff. “Every time you check in, we will reward you with $1 that goes to a veterinary hospital and its angel fund,” she said.
“Project Sticker is the vehicle by which people can find everything they need. We want you to stick with us. We want you sticking in veterinary medicine.”