Detecting and stemming spread of animal diseases to humans

Seventy percent of all new emerging pathogens in human health come from animal habitats, and zoonotic diseases such as coronaviruses and bird flu are increasing. The pathogens may be bacterial, viral or parasitic and can spread to humans through direct contact with the host animal, or through food, water or the environment. Sometimes with fatal consequences. All the vet schools in Australasia recently came together with vet schools from 8 Asian countries and other organisations in the region to improve veterinary epidemiology education. This included free eLearning modules developed by APCOVE  - which is a University of Sydney led Asia Pacific Consortium. The training package is designed to help vets and animal handlers detect, and be active in preventing infectious diseases identified in the field before they get to the pandemic point. Professor Naomi Cogger from Massey University Vet school is a member of APCOVE.