The University of Sydney’s Asia Pacific Consortium of Veterinary Epidemiology (APCOVE) has unveiled a comprehensive field training program at the World Health Summit in Berlin. This initiative aims to equip veterinary professionals and animal handlers to identify and prevent infectious diseases in the field before they escalate into global pandemics. The training package, presented during the Global Field Epidemiology Partnership meeting, is available for free to all and represents a substantial resource for worldwide field veterinary epidemiology training.
As the risk of zoonotic diseases transferring from animals to humans rises, as demonstrated by the COVID-19 pandemic, this training becomes crucial in preventing outbreaks that could affect both animals and humans. The package encompasses 36 eLearning modules covering a range of topics, developed collaboratively by over 40 APCOVE partners from various countries.
These modules have been tested and translated into multiple languages and are available under a Creative Commons license. The initiative has been supported by the Indo-Pacific Centre for Health Security of the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), focusing on strengthening health security and preventing future pandemics.
https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2023/10/18/apcove-animal-disease-detective-training-elearning-modules-launched.html
