Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Law Enforcement Officers on Rabies and Animal Control Issues in Kansas
| Autor: | A. Straily, I. Trevino-Garrison |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2016 |
| Předmět: |
Adult
Male Health Knowledge Attitudes Practice Veterinary medicine Adolescent Rabies Epidemiology 030231 tropical medicine Officer Young Adult 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Surveys and Questionnaires Zoonoses medicine Vaccination of dogs Animals Humans 030212 general & internal medicine Animal Husbandry Enforcement Response rate (survey) Licensure General Veterinary General Immunology and Microbiology Jurisdiction business.industry Data Collection Public Health Environmental and Occupational Health Law enforcement Middle Aged medicine.disease Police Infectious Diseases Female Medical emergency business |
| Zdroj: | Zoonoses and Public Health. 64:111-117 |
| ISSN: | 1863-1959 |
| Popis: | Rabies is a deadly zoonoses endemic in the United States, including Kansas. Animal control programmes that emphasize vaccination of dogs and cats, removal of stray animals and enforcement of licensure programmes have historically been essential in reducing the risk of rabies exposures to humans (Beran, 1991). Kansas does not mandate the use of animal control officers [ACOs] and in areas where there is no designated animal control officer, law enforcement officers [LEOs] are required to fill that role. Little is known about LEOs' knowledge of rabies, their current practices in responding to animal-related calls or if they receive any specialized training to perform the duties of an ACO. A web-based, voluntary and anonymous survey was sent to law enforcement officers in Kansas in January 2014. The survey included questions about animal control practices and a self-assessment of rabies knowledge. The response rate was 16.2%. All respondents indicated LEOs will respond to animal-related calls, even if there was an ACO available in their department or jurisdiction. A majority of respondents indicated they had not received training on safe animal handling (62.9%, 61/97) or zoonoses prevention (85.6%, 83/97), even though a strong majority considered such training important (89.7% and 79.4%, respectively). Most respondents (>80%) were able to correctly identify animals capable of transmitting rabies but were less aware of how rabies was transmitted or the severity of rabies in humans. Our results demonstrate that Kansas LEOs perform animal control duties, many without the proper training, even though most consider such training to be important to be able to perform their duties safely. Training on safe animal handling and zoonoses prevention should be provided to all LEOs in Kansas to enable them to safely execute their duties and provide timely and accurate information to citizens regarding rabies prevention. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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