From the two student debates that had been conducted in February and June 2017, it became apparent that many students have long regarded microbes as undesirable creatures because the presence of some is associated with diseases in humans.
However, the truth is that microbes shouldn’t be regarded as such anymore; microbes are actually partners for life and naturally found in association with humans, animals, plants; intervening in large numbers of vital activities in all forms of life. What should be of concern is rather the type of association which is highly regulated by human activities and behaviors; especially in connection with hygiene (evidenced by the discussion on the recent avian flu in Cameroon and Ebola epidemics in several West Africa countries) and exacerbated by resistance to antimicrobial agents. Most human conditions in developing countries are associated with infectious diseases in connection with poor hygiene practices. Accordingly, good hygiene can help in the control of infectious disease. Infectious disease agents can also come from animals and/or from animal-derived products.
The November 24th debate on tuberculosis further strengthened students’ knowledge on infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance. This knowledge provided a basis for planning the community outreach expected to involve students from different fields of studies at the UdM. Based on that and on students’ expectations, tools for training on zoonotic diseases were developed. Emphasis was laid on exposure to harmful microorganisms and their transmission that represent the major engines for endemicity, favored by asymptomatic carriage. Rabies and Anthrax were used as the training topics; listed in the top ten priority zoonoses in Cameroon alongside tuberculosis, Ebola fever and Avian Influenza. Upon completion of the training, the attendees were equipped with tools that would allow better understanding of the government systems, policies and priorities; in connection with management of epidemic-prone diseases in the country, the core competency needs for International Health Regulation (IHR), the World Health Organization for Animal Health (OIE), Performance of Veterinary Services (PVS) and One Health (OH). The students needed this knowledge to fit in and interact efficiently in identifying, preventing and controlling infectious diseases trend in the multidisciplinary framework imposed by the current trend of globalization.
The training objectives were; 1) using the right vocabulary while communicating with community members on threats of zoonotic infectious diseases; 2) using multidisciplinary approaches in preventing and responding to outbreaks; 3) introducing aspects related to Biosafety and Biosecurity in the control of IDs (vaccine, clean washing etc.); 4) understanding government policy in preventing and controlling outbreaks of zoonotic diseases; 5) using leadership management skills to involve stakeholders in preventing and controlling outbreaks of zoonotic diseases.
One hundred and thirteen (113) students attended the training. They came from different disciplines including Pharmacy, Human Medicine, Biomedical Sciences, Nursing, Physiotherapy, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry, Sciences and Technology.
The Focal Person welcomed participants and stressed the need for collaboration for the management of IDs that represent major challenges for human, animal and environmental health at a globe scale. He briefly elaborated the connection between human and animal health and disease conditions and the role of ignorance, low education and multiple hosts in maintaining endemicity of zoonotic diseases. He reminded participants that tuberculosis was discussed a week earlier as typical zoonotic condition for which the etiologic agents could be detected in several animal species and humans with different health status. He concluded that collaboration of resources from different fields (multidisciplinary approach) is the key for any initiative against zoonotic diseases.
(Name) introduced anthrax and rabies, going from the description of the etiologic agents through the fatality rates, epidemiology, clinical findings and disease prevention. Several questions were asked after and the resource persons including the government representative and the veterinarian faculty representative provided more information for better understanding of the issues.
The students were taken through the first case study on rabies after which a test was administered. The group work was followed by dramatized presentations that all groups performed (four in total). From these drama skits, economic impact of rabies in a community was raised in connection with potentially high morbidity and mortality rates. It also came out clearly that herdsmen and pet animal owners were good channels to use to pass on the anti-rabies message in the community. Community leaders were also identified as the first people to contact for the successful implementation of the sensitization.
The Ministry of Fishery and Animal Industry resource person educated students on policy used by the government to prevent and respond to zoonotic disease outbreaks. It came out that, different kinds of prevention measures were put in place by the government for this purpose. He gave examples of set of actions taken to control the spread of bird flu in 2017.
The students strongly believe that they can effectively create awareness on ID threats through the use of social networks, radio, and text messages on mobile telephones. They also observed that communication with classmates could be effective during student parties and informal discussion in classrooms. There were also suggestions of installing video players in buses that carry students and personnel from one campus to the other with the messages. All groups identified the roles of stakeholders in managing and controlling infectious disease crises. Most importantly, it was observed that poverty typically exacerbates infectious disease threats. Globalization is another key engine in the spreading of zoonotic IDs etiologies.
Two videos were presented on anthrax from which students learnt contamination, prevention, control measures, disease symptom and physiopathology. The members of the student’s club were also taught how to search for reliable information from the internet for self-training.
The real challenge ahead is how to amass the critical numbers necessary to relay the OH message to students from all fields of study at the UdM.
A quick survey among students after the training indicated that this was a training that met the students’ knowledge needs.
Participant survey/evaluation results
|
Items tested |
Pre-test |
Post-test |
|
Etiology of rabies |
92.5% |
97.5% |
|
Rabies prevention |
47.5% |
63.34% |
|
Mode of transmission |
77.5% |
97.5% |
|
Etiology of anthrax |
77.5% |
78.4% |
|
Types of anthrax |
60% |
80.48% |
|
Contamination with anthrax |
22.5% |
36.58% |
|
Means of preventing anthrax |
35% |
58.53% |
|
Student’s appreciation of the training activities 4: very good; 3: good; 2: average e.i: 37% of student’s participation recognized that the training was good. |
4: 80.48% 3: 17.07% 2: 2.45% |
|