Veterinary Public Health

Introduction:
The veterinary contribution to public health practice is very significant.
Veterinary Public Health (VPH) is a component of public health that focuses on the application
of veterinary science to protect and improve the physics, mental and social wellbeing of humans.
Veterinary Public Health is devoted for the protection of public health.

Role:
Veterinary Public Health (VPH) activities involve a very diverse range of functions
within public health which reflect the broad community of interest between veterinary and
human medicine. Zoonosis continues to represent an important health hazard in most part of the
world where they cause considerable expenditure and losses for the health and agricultural
sectors.

Although the situation is improving to the industrialized world, zoonosis prevention and
control will remain an area of major concern in most developing countries. Expenses related to
the prevention of zoonotic diseases in humans are likely to increase dramatically in the near
future programs for this control and event elimination in animal reservoirs are urgently needed
the technical knowledge exists to bring diseases such as brucellosis, rabies and bovine
tuberculosis under control during the first decade of the next century. To achieve the goal,
constant efforts will be needed for the next 15 to 20 years. Resistance to antimicrobials among
zoonotic bacteria has also become an issue of increasing concern for animal production and
human health. In recent years, the threat of a global influenza pandemic has resulted in renewed
research action in relation to mammalian and avian reservoirs.

Common to all these emerging problems have been new trends in animal production
practice, changing patterns of wildlife population, demographic changes such as population
growth, mobility, urbanization and globalization of food industry. Development call for
increased levels of epidemiological surveillance, preparedness and for novel approaches to
control and prevention. However awareness of this development is not always translates into
effective action.
Scope:
The scope of Veterinary Public Health (VPH) is multidisciplinary. It involves not only
veterinarians in government, non-government and private sectors, but also other professions like
Physicians, Nurses, Microbiologist, Sanitarians, Agriculture scientists etc. In the fourth coming
decades, this is an urgent need to expand the links between human and animal medicine.

For example- at least one half of the 1700 agents known to infect humans have an
animal or insect vector reservoirs and many emerging infections either are appear to be
zoonosis.

Core Domains:
 Diagnosis, surveillance, epidemiology, control, prevention and elimination of zoonosis.
 Management of health aspects of laboratory animal facilities and diagnostic laboratories.
 Biomedical research, health education and extension.
 Production and control of biological products and medical devices.

Issues:
 Farming methods
 Food production chain
 Trade, travel and movement
 Interaction between animal and human.
 Natural and man-made disasters.
 Emerging and re-emerging zoonotic diseases.
 Reduces resources- pace of change.

New and Future trade that will influence VPH

 Promoting VPH within the health for all in 21st century strategy.
 The implications for VPH of increasing national and international trade in animals and
animal products.
 Surveillance and control of emerging and re-emerging diseases and challenges of VPH.
 Implication of structural adjustment programs, economics in transition and privatization
of veterinary services for VPH.
 The need for basic and applied research to meet the new challenges of VPH.
 In a Nutshell, when people think of veterinarians, they usually think
of doctors for animals. But veterinary medicine is so much more than that. Public health
focuses on disease prevention, prolonging life and promoting health in our society and
veterinarians play a critical role in public health. In light of these developments, national,
international organization will have to increase this involvement at the interface of animal
and human health as they have core importance in uplifting health status in all levels.