Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Animal health professionals' knowledge,risk perceptions and preventive practices towards zoonotic infections in Nigeria: any challenging gap?
- Journal:
- Veterinaria italiana
- Year:
- 2019
- Authors:
- Alhaji, Nma Bida et al.
- Affiliation:
- Niger State Veterinary Hospital
Plain-English summary
This study looked at how much animal health professionals in Nigeria know about diseases that can spread from animals to humans, their perceptions of the risks, and the preventive measures they take. Out of 582 surveyed, 529 responded, revealing that most veterinarians (92%) had a good understanding of these zoonotic diseases, while only about a third of para-veterinarians (32.4%) did. Veterinarians also felt a higher risk of infection during procedures like necropsies (animal autopsies) compared to para-veterinarians, and more veterinarians (54%) believed that washing hands before eating at work was an effective way to reduce risk, compared to just 25% of para-veterinarians. Additionally, those working with large animals were less likely to follow good protective practices. Overall, the findings highlight important gaps in knowledge and practices that could help improve public health and prevent zoonotic diseases in Nigeria.
Abstract
This study was aimed to assess zoonotic disease knowledge, risk perceptions, and preventive practices of animal health professionals in Nigeria. Cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted on 582 participants and 529 responded. Collected data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression models. The proportion of veterinarians (92.0%) which knowledge about zoonosis was much higher (P < 0.001) than that of para-veterinarians (32.4%). In contrast to para-veterinarians (46.2%), the majority of veterinarians (76.7%) perceived high risk of zoonotic infections during necropsy/tissue collections. Similarly, a much higher (P < 0.001) proportion of veterinarians (54.0%) considered hand washing before eating at work as effective way of risk mitigation, compared to para-veterinarians (25.0%). Professionals in large animal practice were less likely (OR 0.35; 95% CI: 0.16, 0.77) not to be engaged in satisfactory protective measures. These results constitute public health contributions to the risk mitigation information that may support measures for zoonosis prevention in Nigeria.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30951183/