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the vaccination of owned (and mostly confined) animals, yet this data
is seldom collected and rarely contributes to the overall vaccination
coverage achieved, despite the number of animals vaccinated often being
of significant proportion. Therefore, GARC has made the mobile phone application and vaccination tracking tool available to any interested person,
free of charge. The aim is to encourage improved data collection across
sectors, including the private sector and civil society, and to use the data
to generate a clear and complete analysis of the true rabies situation and
intervention efforts in the country, from both confined and free-roaming
animals.
With accurate data collected in a cohesive and comprehensive manner,
the cycle of neglect can be broken, ensuring that rabies control and
elimination efforts are well resourced and prioritized. To achieve this,
we encourage the use of the free mobile phone application and tools available through the Rabies Epidemiological Bulletin for any person interested
in supporting rabies surveillance efforts in their country – whether as a
private practitioner or during a mass dog vaccination campaign.
References:
1. Nel LH. Factors Impacting the Control of Rabies. Microbiol Spectr.
2013;1(2):1-12. doi:10.1128/microbiolspec.OH-0006-2012.f1
2. Minghui R, Stone M, Semedo MH, Nel L. New global strategic
plan to eliminate dog-mediated rabies by 2030. Lancet Glob Heal.
2018;6(8):e828-e829. doi:10.1016/S2214-109X(18)30302-4
3. Nel LH. Discrepancies in data reporting for rabies, Africa. Emerg Infect
Dis. 2013;19(4):529-533.
4. Scott TP, Coetzer A, Fahrion AS, Nel LH. Addressing the disconnect between the estimated, reported, and true rabies data: The development of a
regional African Rabies Bulletin. Front Vet Sci. 2017;4(FEB). doi:10.3389/
fvets.2017.00018
5. Coetzer A, Scott TP, Noor K, Gwenhure LF, Nel LH. A Novel Integrated
and Labile eHealth System for Monitoring Dog Rabies Vaccination Campaigns. Vaccines. 2019;7(3):108. doi:10.3390/vaccines7030108
6. Athingo R, Tenzin T, Coetzer A, et al. Application of the GARC Data
Logger—a custom-developed data collection device—to capture and
monitor mass dog vaccination campaigns in Namibia. PLoS Negl Trop Dis.
2020;14(12):e0008948. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0008948
0023
E-LEARNING FOR PROFESSIONALS: RABIES
CERTIFICATION COURSES
A. Coetzer1, T. Scott2, L. Nel1
Pretoria/South Africa, 2Luxembourg/Luxembourg
1
Qualifications:
Andre Coetzer
PhD, Microbiology
andre.coetzer@rabiesalliance.org
Enhanced public awareness and responsible pet ownership has been
identified as two of the key factors that need to be addressed in order to
successfully control and eliminate rabies1. Published literature focusing
on the benefit of increased public awareness with regards to rabies and its
prevention has showcased the benefit of these educational activities, with
studies reporting on increased animal welfare2, increased post-exposure
prophylaxis (PEP) compliance3, decreased bite cases4, and increased
vaccination coverage5.
Despite the clear benefit associated with increased public awareness,
global educational initiatives are often not comprehensive enough, with
various Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices (KAP) studies reporting on
people with a sub-optimal level of understanding about rabies and its
prevention6,7. In response, the Global Alliance for Rabies Control, in
collaboration with the Partners of Rabies Prevention (PRP), developed an
online education platform (termed the GARC Education Platform (GEP))
where interested parties could gain free access to the most up-to-date
and correct information about rabies and its prevention through four
established essential courses – each addressing a specific educational
need in the realm of rabies control8 (Figure 1). The courses are structured
as dynamic step by step self-learning programs and each course has a
final assessment which, upon mastering, the participant is rewarded with
an official certificate as evidence of the specific achievement.
Figure 1. Overview of the courses available on the GARC Education
Platform
The first essential course of the GEP is the Rabies Educator Certificate
(REC), which was developed to help meet the need to effectively disseminate accurate, life-saving information about rabies to at-risk communities
throughout the world. The REC course is open to any interested participant, but is aimed specifically at people who work regularly in at-risk
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