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Veterinarian and epidemiologist Mathew Muturi tells how a Rift Valley Fever outbreak led to implementation of One Health-based policies. Muturi talks about his One Health training and its applications for health and biopreparedness.

Julie\\u2019s Biggest Takeaways:

One Health

Simple communication between experts helps facilitate implementation of one health in public systems. Sitting experts in human and animal health in the same office allows easier communication between these different health sectors.

One Health policies involving close collaboration between animal and human healthcare workers were first implemented in Kenya in response to the threat of avian influenza, but were discontinued after the threat waned. Human cases of Rift Valley Fever, due to spillover from a livestock outbreak, led to the discovery that these collaborative policies could prevent other outbreaks as well, and the policies were reinstated.

Zoonotic diseases can often be the most overlooked. Officials of countries where endemic diseases are present may have preparedness plans for serious cases but may overlook something endemic like brucellosis.

There are 42 subtribes in Kenya, including diverse languages, religions, and beliefs. Public health interventions do their best to align the local beliefs of the people to minimize risk of pathogen exposure.

Featured Quotes:

\\u201cOne health is not a new concept; it\\u2019s an old concept that explains the health of humans, animals, and the environment is interconnected. It\\u2019s a concept that plays out in everyday life.\\u201d

\\u201cOne of the reasons One Health has been able to be successful in Kenya, and that I suggest to other countries wishing to implement this program, is the sitting together, talking together. Make sure that you work together, see each other - I don\\u2019t think communication works well enough if it\\u2019s on an ad hoc basis. The thing that has worked for us is sitting together.\\u201d

\\u201cThe most important aspect of One Health is the fact that that it\\u2019s impossible to control diseases that come from animals only by focusing on humans. It\\u2019s like trying to concentrate on putting out fires without ascertaining where the fires are coming from.\\u201d

\\u201cEndemic diseases, despite the fact that they\\u2019re ever-present, are often the most ignored.\\u201d

\\u201cA lot of the risk practices are cultural, and cultural change is very slow.\\u201d

\\u201cThe value of One Health is much more than the investment required to put into it. It\\u2019s one of the few things I\\u2019ve seen actually work in implementation of disease control strategies, in surveillance and in general disease control. It\\u2019s worked for Kenya and I believe it can work for all other countries.\\u201d

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Links for the episode:

Republic of Kenya Zoonotic Disease Unit

Prioritization of Zoonotic Diseases in Kenya, 2015. Plos One.