Veterinary Public

Health
Tom Eversole, DVM, MS, MS
May 13, 2009

Public Health in the News

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001

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 Petting Zoos
and Hemorrhagic E. coli

West Nile Virus Transmission

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 Avian
Influenza

Bird Flu

Pandemic Flu

What’s the
difference?

Emergency Preparedness
and Disaster Relief

Oregon
Veterinary
Emergency
Response
Team

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 Public Health

Those things we do as a society to keep

people healthy

Creating the social and environmental

conditions in which
people can be healthy

Population is the
patient

Veterinary Public Health

VPH is a component of public health activities devoted
to the application of professional veterinary skills,
knowledge and resources to the protection and
improvement of human health

VPH is the sum of all contributions to the physical,

mental and social well-being of humans through an
understanding and application of veterinary science.

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 Organizing the Work:
Three Core Functions of PH

Assessment of health status,
risks and services

Policy Development (health laws)

Assurance of quality &
effectiveness of health
services

Example: Rabies

50,000 - 70,000 rabies deaths

per year globally
~3 deaths / yr in USA
Why?
What is the rationale for requiring
vaccination of domestic animals?

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 Herd Immunity
(Probability)
= Immune
(vaccinated or recovered)

Susceptible
(Not immune)
But not exposed

= Susceptible,
Not immune

FOOD SAFETY
Epidemic of renal failure from consumption of dog
and cat food – 2007

Melamine in wheat gluten?

National cooperation of veterinary diagnostic
laboratories

Potentially thousands of dogs and cats affected

Food chain? What happened in 2008?

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INTENSIVE AGRICULTURE
Factory Farms

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 Veterinary Public Health
VPH deals with the
part of public health
that uses the
knowledge, skills and
resources of
veterinary science
(medicine) to restore
or maintain human
health and wellbeing.

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Career Opportunities in
Veterinary Public Health

Animal
Health

Ecosystem Human
Health Health

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 Toward a World Class
Public Health System in Oregon

Government Healthy Academia

PH Policy
Statutes, Quality
Development,
Assurance, People Prog. Evaluation,
Resources
Research

Strong PH Engaged
System Universities

Supported Prepared
OPHD, LHDs Workforce

Practice
Assessment,
Population-wide
interventions,
Comm.
Engagement

PROPOSED: New College of Public Health and

Human Sciences with new MPH programs

Department of Department of Department of Department of

Nutrition and Human Design and “Population”
Exercise Development and Human Health
Sciences
Family Sciences Environment

MPH in MPH in •Collaborate in MPH & PhD in

•Nutrition (+RD) •Gerontology MPH Program in •Health Promotion
•Nutrition & • Women’s, Environment, •Environment, Safety & Health
Physical Activity Family & Child Safety & Health •Health Management & Policy
Health •International MPH in
Health •International Health
•Biostatistics
•Epidemiology

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Proposed
Dual Degree
Programs

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