Biosecurity & Risk Communication

Procedures intended to protect humans or animals against disease or harmful biological agents

What is biosecurity?

- wearing gloves

- trying to only take animals out of stall if absolutely necessary in hospital

What are some practices of biosecurity? What does biosecurity look like?

State Animal Health Officials

What does SAHO stand for?

Foreign animal diseases

USDA Program Diseases

(may or may not have some zoonotic diseases)

What type of diseases do the Federal and State Animal Health Officials have on their list of reportable diseases?

- Lists from Federal and State Animal Health Officials

- States may have an additional list of diseases at interest

- Possibly some zoonotic diseases

- Bioterrorism disease

What are some types of diseases that may fall under mandatory reporting at the state/federal level?/what agencies create these lists?

- there ya go -

Be aware that sometimes reportable diseases are very common diseases - like mites, or Johnes

Animal movement and handling - any unnecessary flow?

Human movement - clinical flow, non-essential personal

Isolation & Quarantine procedures

What are some things to consider when putting biosecurity measures in place at a hospital - what movement/procedures?

1) don't kiss sheep and goats (you gonna get orfed)

2) he's got a drink - shouldn't be there

What's wrong here?

1) mouth open at the butt end of a cow - you finna get some feces in there

2) Cloth/fabric coveralls - can get soak through - can be on your clothes

What's wrong here?

Wearing clean coveralls unique to each patient, disinfection of boots between patients, and the use of latex gloves (changed in between patients) are the minimum requirements for preventing the movement of microorganisms between patients in the facility.

What is barrier nursing in terms of biosecurity?

Infection control

Disinfectant mats (charged with disinfectant and uncontaminated by organic debris) will help minimize the transmission of microorganisms between patients. What is this an example of?

quarantine

There are a variety of reportable diseases in the United States on both the state and the national level. In production animal medicine these diagnoses are often made on farm and may lead to a temporary ____________ of the premises until confirmatory testing can be completed.

animal caregivers and non-caregivers.

The movement of non-caregivers should be extremely limited (nonexistent) in an animal facility

What are the two main categories of personnel when it comes to an animal hospital? For which of these personnel should movement be extremely limited in the animal facility?

Many facilities offer both in house and ambulatory services. Occasionally accessing ambulatory vehicles requires/allows for travel through the hospital as one leaves or returns. This again is a point where pathogens can be exchanged and moved.

How might personnel flow potentially impact pathogen transmission to/from clinic?

Animal flow throughout the hospital often puts animals in contact with animals from other farms. This poses a point where pathogens can be exchanged and moved.

How might animal flow potentially impact pathogen transmission to/from clinic?

Many personnel have animals at home that may pose an at risk population. Animals actively hospitalized in the facility may become part of a quarantine when traffic in and out of the facility is prohibited. This can cause significant disruptions in the business including but not limited to deliveries, shipping of samples out of the practice, and disruption of service to clientele.

What are some other random logistics that might potentially impact pathogen transmission to/from a clinic environment?

- communicating what groups are at high risk for a disease

- what ethnicities, age groups, co-morbidities, may be at higher risk

- being able to communicate the meaning of reproductive rate, mode of transmission, symptoms, and symptom status to people

- providing guidance about behaviors that may mitigate or transmit the pathogen

How does risk communication relate to person?

- where the pathogen originates from - being culturally aware of the implications of "blaming" a place for the cause

- educating people on why doing what might help slow spread of a disease - being able to communicate it in a way that they understand (keeping in mind where they are from - the cultural context)

How does risk communication relate to place?

- communicating when an epidemic might pass, and projecting the pattern in the future (based on knowledge of the etiological agent itself)

- communicating when a vaccine might be available and describing how it will be distributed (to maintain order)

- communicating how the the disease progresses and what signs might indicate that you are still infective

How does risk communication relate to time?

communicating

about the agent:

- generalizations are the "easy" button in terms of communicating about the agent to the public

- but COVID is not understood and may effect individuals differently

- How can confirmation of presence of agent be proved

How does risk communication relate to the agent-host-environment triad in terms of the agent?

communicating

about the host:

- who can be the host

- where it originated from

- how hosts (people) can transmit it - via certain behavior

- communicating what results of antigen vs. antibody present in host means

- if hosts can be re-infected

How does risk communication relate to the agent-host-environment triad in terms of the host?

communicating

about the environment:

- what type of environment does agent thrive in - hot/cold/humid/dry

- can it circulate in air

- how population density contributes to transmission

- what surfaces the agent can survive on and for how long

- how agent interacts with other disease (e.g. covid with flu)

How does risk communication relate to the agent-host-environment triad in terms of the environment?