Nancy Chaney, RN, MS – Environmental Science– Past President, Association of Idaho Cities and Board member, National League of Cities, former mayor, City of Moscow Idaho (USA)

Please scroll down to read page 13 about Outstanding One Health advocate

IDAHO NURSING

Nov, Dec 2020, Jan 2021
Volume 43, • No. 3
Official peer reviewed publication of Idaho Alliance of Leaders in Nursing & Idaho Center for Nursing
Quarterly publication distributed to approximately 22,500 RNs and LPNs in Idaho.

“Simply put, we need a universally employed One Health approach in place now so we can more effectively deal with future health challenges, ones we will surely face, possibly next year or the next decade, whenever.”

“The Covid-19 crisis has reminded us of the links between health and the environment. On 12 November, during the third edition of the Paris Peace Forum, the Ministerial Meeting of the Alliance for Multilateralism inaugurated the One Health High-Level Expert Council. This Council aims to collect and disseminate reliable information on the links between human, animal and environmental health in the context of the erosion of biodiversity. The meeting was also an opportunity to present the report of the Forum on Information and Democracy’s working group on infodemics and to reaffirm the right to reliable information. …”

“In their Perspective “Rigorous wildlife disease surveillance” (10 July, p. 145), M. Watsa et al.underscore the value of One Health approaches to stimulate integration across currently siloed efforts in zoonotic research and mitigation. To achieve comprehensive decentralized pathogen surveillance, there is an urgent need to develop environmental and biodiversity infrastructure in biodiverse countries experiencing high rates of habitat conversion, wildlife trafficking, and human-wildlife interactions. …”

“… Close collaboration between animal and public health authorities is imperative to better identify and reduce the impact of this disease, OIE said. Furthermore, a global One Health approach is needed to understand risks for animal and human health as well as ecosystem health as a whole. …”

“… We will get through this pandemic. But we do not have to wait until the next one before implementing the One Health approach to secure a healthier future for our nation and the world.”

“ … Further, WHO warned that “a [coronavirus] vaccine cannot address the global under-investment in essential public health functions and resilient health systems, nor the urgent need for a ‘One Health’ approach that encompasses the health of humans.” According to WHO’s release, WHO Director-General emphasized the availability of the vaccines, saying, that it is time for the world to heal from the ravages of the pandemic. Further, he warned about the geopolitical divisions that “drive nations further into the chasm of an unhealthier, un-safer and unfairer future”. …”

Key points:

• Denmark to cull its mink to control the risk of human COVID-19 transmission
• Virus strains in mink and humans were found to be less sensitive to antibodies
• The mutated strain could effect the development of an effective vaccine

“Thus, the mutated virus in minks can have devastating consequences worldwide.”

“… Need for a One Health Approach to Handling Pandemics 

Make no mistake, COVID-19 is only one of many such viruses and other pandemics are likely. A One Health approach calls for pulling together human, animal, and environmental factors to arrive at faster, better preventative and control modalities. As a result, fighting the likely impending onslaught of zoonotic pandemic diseases like COVID-19  now and in the future, requires giving far greater consideration to institutionalizing a OneHealth approach. And that includes establishing extensive education and collaborative research efforts between human and animal doctors.

The third component of the One Health, approach namely the environment, has also become a visible element of this aerosol COVID-19 pandemic and will become increasingly so in the future. It too requires heightened education and research funding attention.

Country and global leadership must proactively think and act holistically, dedicating resources to research and teaching in universities and at all institutions of higher learning, so that the interconnection between people, animals, [plants], and their shared environment is recognized—thus significantly contributing to our future well-being.  Indeed, as all One Health supporters and advocates know, One Health implementation will help protect and, for those who get sick, save untold millions of lives in our time and for future generations.”

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” … Currently, several initiatives have started bringing planetary health to primary and secondary schools. In 2019, the Italian Government mandated education on climate change for children of all grades.¹⁰

Meanwhile, an educational strategy programme based on One Health, developed by One Health Sweden, has been introduced into Swedish secondary schools.¹¹

In the USA, the Foreign Animal and Zoonotic Disease Defense Center (Texas A&M University, TX) has been providing One Health modules to high schools in several states.¹²

Co-convened by the One Health Commission and One Health Initiative, the International One Health for One Planet Education Initiative is leading the development of a global curriculum for One Health and wellbeing for all educational levels, including primary and secondary education. Additionally, One Health Lessons has developed teaching materials for students aged 6–18 years and beyond that focus on the relationship between the environment, animals, and humans. At the time of writing, these lessons are being translated into 50 languages that are spoken in 97 countries.  … “

The Coronavirus pandemic has shown us why we need closer cooperation between veterinary and human health sectors, writes Roxane Feller.