BackVeterinary doctors to be a part of National Disease Surveillance Program
National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is exploring the option of involving veterinary public health specialists in the national disease surveillance programme
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New Delhi: With the threat of zoonotic diseases—ailments transmitted from animals to humans—looming large, the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is exploring the option of involving veterinary public health specialists in the national disease surveillance programme.
Zoonotic diseases include brucellosis (caused by unpasteurized milk or undercooked meat), swine flu, rabies, plague, and bovine tuberculosis.
The role of veterinary public health specialists will be clearly defined so that the disease pattern of many emerging and re-emerging diseases that are showing up in different places in the country, and most of which are going undiagnosed and unreported, can be studied.
“There is utmost need in the country today to build bridges of cooperation between medical researchers and practitioners, veterinary scientists and practitioners, and environmentalists to solve the problem. If we want to have a proper surveillance system of these diseases, role of veterinary public health specialists cannot ignored," said A C Dhariwal director, NCDC.
The Centre has also decided to form a national task force comprising medical, veterinary and environmental experts. There are plans to make veterinary public health a part of the National Health Mission.
The government also plans to study the economic impact of zoonotic disease outbreaks in humans so that prevention and control guidelines are framed well in advance jointly by both medical and veterinary fraternities.
“As the World Health Organization (WHO) is now emphasizing ‘One health’ approach to understand and prevent the growing incidence of diseases communicating from animals to humans in the world because of the fact that the animal, human and environmental health are inextricably linked," said Sarman Singh, head of clinical microbiology and molecular medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.
About 68% of human are in direct, close contact with animals in India and often not far from wildlife. Because of inadequate diagnostic facilities, unfamiliarity with these infections and lack of coordination between livestock owners, veterinarians, physicians etc. actual incidence of zoonotic diseases in India go unnoticed and unreported, especially from rural India.
Out of all microbial pathogens, above 60% cause zoonotic diseases, while 75% of all emerging diseases are zoonotic in nature. However, occurrence of rabies is predominant and account for more than 90% of all zoonotic cases in the country. India accounts for more than 30,000 rabies-related deaths per year, which is almost one-third of all the cases in the world. Swine flu and brucellosis have also been a major concern for the country.
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