Role of the veterinarian and one health in the fight against zoonoses: A review
Dr. Alok Kumar Yadav
Veterinary Officer, CCBF, Andeshnagar, Lakhimpur-Kheri (U.P.)
Corresponding author: – alokvet1000@gmail.com
Abstract:
The one health approach continues to be a highly investigated concept, via the pursuit of scholarly resources involving the health of humans, animals, and the environment. There is a need to increase research on zoonoses, food safety, and agriculture and to improve the understanding of the one health concept. This could be achieved by introducing more
scholarly resources in developing countries by the further development of the Internet and the free availability of online information on one health. The use of Massive Open
Online Courses (MOOC) available to developing countries is now being offered to deliver courses on the approach and applications of one health. This is critical because most
of the public health and economic impacts that occur within the concept of one health occur in developing nations. The lack of basic health infrastructure in developing countries
means that everything else suffers as a result, namely, the environment, human, and animal health and well-being. The future of one health is at a crossroad; there is a need to more
clearly define its boundaries and demonstrate its benefits. The greatest acceptance of one health is seen where it is having significant impacts on control of infectious diseases. There is
also a continuing need for further efforts towards integration with the global community serving as the unit of a one system approach.
Keywords: Veterinarian, One health, Zoonoses
Introduction:
One health is a concept that aims to bring together human, animal, and environmental health.
One health is defined by the One Health Commission as “the collaborative effort of multiple disciplines to obtain optimal health for people, animals, and our environment.” In another definition, the One Health Initiative Task Force (OHITF) defines one health as “the promotion, improvement, and defense for the health and well-being of all species by enhancing cooperation and collaboration between physicians, veterinarians, and other scientific health professionals and by promoting strengths in leadership and
management to achieve these goals.” The one health approach plays a significant role in the prevention and control of zoonoses. It has been noted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Graham et al. that approximately 75% of new emerging human infectious diseases are defined as zoonotic, meaning that they may be naturally transmitted from vertebrate animals to humans. New and re-emerging zoonoses have evolved throughout the last three decades partly as a consequence of the increasing interdependence of humans on animals and their products and our close association with companion animals. Zoonoses should therefore be considered the single most critical risk factor to human health and well-being, with regard to infectious diseases.
What is one Health?
‘One Health’ is an approach to designing and implementing programmes, policies, legislation and research in which multiple sectors communicate and work together to achieve better public health outcomes.
One Health refers to two related ideas: First, it is the concept that humans, animals, and the world we live in are inextricably linked. Second, it refers to the collaborative effort of multiple disciplines working locally, nationally, and globally to attain optimal health for people, animals, and the environment.
The concept behind One Health has existed for centuries. But even today studies in the areas of human, animal, and environmental science are largely conducted independently, and obvious connections may be missed. As the human population continues to grow and our relationships with animals continue to evolve, understanding the interdependencies of people, animals, and the environment becomes even more critical to our collective health and safety.
The areas of work in which a One Health approach is particularly relevant include food safety, the control of zoonoses (diseases that can spread between animals and humans, such as flu, rabies and Rift Valley Fever), and combatting antibiotic resistance (when bacteria change after being exposed to antibiotics and become more difficult to treat).
Why do we need a One Health approach?
Many of the same microbes infect animals and humans, as they share the eco-systems they live in. Efforts by just one sector cannot prevent or eliminate the problem. For instance, rabies in humans is effectively prevented only by targeting the animal source of the virus (for example, by vaccinating dogs).
Information on influenza viruses circulating in animals is crucial to the selection of viruses for human vaccines for potential influenza pandemics. Drug-resistant microbes can be transmitted between animals and humans through direct contact between animals and humans or through contaminated food, so to effectively contain it, a well-coordinated approach in humans and in animals is required.
Who makes the One Health approach work?
Many professionals with a range of expertise who are active in different sectors, such as public health, animal health, plant health and the environment, should join forces to support One Health approaches.
To effectively detect, respond to, and prevent outbreaks of zoonoses and food safety problems, epidemiological data and laboratory information should be shared across sectors. Government officials, researchers and workers across sectors at the local, national, regional and global levels should implement joint responses to health threats.
WHO works closely with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) to promote multi-sectoral responses to food safety hazards, risks from zoonoses, and other public health threats at the human-animal-ecosystem interface and provide guidance on how to reduce these risks.
Veterinarians and One Health:
Veterinarians play an integral role in One Health because animals both impact and are impacted by people and the environment. Whether as clinical practitioners, epidemiologists, or ecological experts, veterinarians are essential to advancing One Health and protecting the health and safety of its three pillars— animals, people, and the environment.
Animal health and welfare:
When it comes to protecting the health and welfare of animals, no one is more committed or better equipped to handle the task than veterinarians and our teams. We don’t just care for animals when they’re sick or injured. We provide preventive care and exams that keep them healthy, work with owners to make sure they get nutritious food,help manage their weight, provide guidance on behavior and training, offer advice on pet selection, and much more. When it comes to protecting the health and welfare of animals, no one is more committed or better equipped to handle the task than veterinarians and our teams. We don’t just care for animals when they’re sick or injured. We provide preventive care and exams that keep them healthy, work with owners to make sure they get nutritious food, help manage their weight, provide guidance on behavior and training, offer advice on pet selection, actively explore emerging technologies to improve patient care, and much more. From pets to livestock, horses, laboratory animals, zoo animals, aquatic animals, wildlife, and beyond, veterinarians’ work preserves the health and welfare of all animal species in all settings.
Public health:
From issues like food safety and security, to diseases that can be transferred between people and animals, veterinarians have the unique knowledge and experience to address the many ways that animals impact people. Likewise, human and public health issues often affect animal health and welfare. For example, restrictions on sheltering animals with people during natural disasters can result in animal abandonment.
Veterinarians protect people, animals, and society:
From issues like food safety and security, to diseases that can be transferred between people and animals, veterinarians have the unique knowledge and experience to address the many ways that animals and people impact one another.
Veterinarians protect people from disease:
Veterinarians are the first and best line of defense against animal diseases that could threaten public health and our national security. We prevent and treat zoonotic diseases ranging from rabies to avian flu, and play a key role in responding to bioterrorism threats such as the anthrax attacks that followed 9/11.
Veterinarians safeguard our food:
Veterinarians protect the health and welfare of livestock, and oversee meatpacking plants to ensure all meat is safe for human consumption.
Veterinarians make medical discoveries:
Veterinarians are crucial to the development of new drugs for both people and animals. As researchers, veterinarians are finding new ways to diagnose, treat, and prevent health disorders in all species.
Food safety:
Ensuring that animals have access to food and feed that is free of contamination is critical to their health and the health of the people who care for them. Diseases caused by salmonella, listeria, and other bacteria can be transferred quickly between people and animals. Veterinarians have the latest scientific information to educate animal owners about selecting the right diets for their animals and handling food safely to reduce the risk of bacteria-related illnesses.
Veterinary medicine also is at the forefront of food security, ensuring the production of high-quality foods derived from animals that are free of microbial or chemical contaminants.
Environmental health:
Veterinary expertise in toxicology, epidemiology, and ecology are vital to efforts to understand, control, prevent, diagnose, and treat environment-associated diseases that affect both people and animals.
One Health Basics:
One Health is a collaborative, multisectoral, and transdisciplinary approach — working at the local, regional, national, and global levels — with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment.
One Health is an approach that recognizes that the health of people is closely connected to the health of animals and our shared environment. One Health is not new, but it has become more important in recent years. This is because many factors have changed interactions between people, animals, plants, and our environment.
- Human populations are growing and expanding into new geographic areas. As a result, more people live in close contact with wild and domestic animals, both livestock and pets. Animals play an important role in our lives, whether for food, fiber, livelihoods, travel, sport, education, or companionship. Close contact with animals and their environments provides more opportunities for diseases to pass between animals and people.
- The earth has experienced changes in climate and land use, such as deforestation and intensive farming practices. Disruptions in environmental conditions and habitats can provide new opportunities for diseases to pass to animals.
- The movement of people, animals, and animal products has increased from international travel and trade. As a result, diseases can spread quickly across borders and around the globe.
These changes have led to the spread of existing or known (endemic) and new or emerging zoonotic diseases, which are diseases that can spread between animals and people. Examples of zoonotic diseases include:
- Rabies
- Salmonella infection
- West Nile virus infection
- Q Fever (Coxiella burnetii)
- Anthrax
- Brucellosis
- Lyme disease
- Ringworm
- Ebola
Animals also share our susceptibility to some diseases and environmental hazards. Because of this, they can sometimes serve as early warning signs of potential human illness. For example, birds often die of West Nile virus before people in the same area get sick with West Nile virus infection.
What are common One Health issues?
One Health issues include zoonotic diseases, antimicrobial resistance, food safety and food security, vector-borne diseases, environmental contamination, and other health threats shared by people, animals, and the environment. Even the fields of chronic disease, mental health, injury, occupational health, and noncommunicable diseases can benefit from a One Health approach involving collaboration across disciplines and sectors. Some of the specific actions of the veterinary profession are shown in Figure.
One Health is gaining recognition in the United States and globally as an effective way to fight health issues at the human-animal-environment interface, including zoonotic diseases. CDC uses a One Health approach by involving experts in human, animal, environmental health, and other relevant disciplines and sectors in monitoring and controlling public health threats and to learn about how diseases spread among people, animals, plants, and the environment.
Successful public health interventions require the cooperation of human, animal, and environmental health partners. Professionals in human health (doctors, nurses, public health practitioners, epidemiologists), animal health (veterinarians, paraprofessionals, agricultural workers), environment (ecologists, wildlife experts), and other areas of expertise need to communicate, collaborate on, and coordinate activities. Other relevant players in a One Health approach could include law enforcement, policymakers, agriculture, communities, and even pet owners. No one person, organization, or sector can address issues at the animal-human-environment interface alone.
By promoting collaboration across all sectors, a One Health approach can achieve the best health outcomes for people, animals, and plants in a shared environment.
Conclusion:
To confront the 21st century threats of emerging zoonotic diseases, we should learn from our predecessors in the 18th and 19th centuries. Visionary leaders and educators of medicine embraced the fact that zoonotic pathogens infect both humans and animals and, as a result, they encouraged their physician colleagues to work closely with their veterinary medical colleagues. On June 25th, 2007, the American Medical Association House of Delegates approved a “One Health” resolution, which promotes the partnership between human and veterinary medicine. The American Veterinary Medical Association set up a task force of prominent veterinarians, physicians, and allied health scientists in July 2007. It was charged with developing strategies to implement the “One Health” concept. These are important steps toward our understanding of how to control, and ultimately, prevent zoonotic disease transmission, which would improve the health and lives of both animals and humans. Schools of medicine, veterinary medicine, and public health
References:
[1] One Health Commission, 2010, http://www .onehealthcommission.org.
[2] One Health: A New Professional Imperative: One Health Initiative Task Force. American Veterinary Association, 2008.
[3] WHO, Combating Emerging Infectious Diseases in the South East Asia Region, 2005.
[4] Graham, J. P. Leibler, J. H. Price, L. B. (2008). “The animal-human interface and infectious disease in industrial food animal production: rethinking biosecurity and biocontainment,” Public Health Reports, vol. 123, no. 3, pp. 282–299
