| Popis: |
Educating youth regarding the risk of zoonotic disease is an important animal and public health concern as nearly three out five new human illnesses are zoonotic. In addition, disease prevention was determined to be the life skill least represented in 4-H youth development programming, making this an important addition to youth programs. Justification for increased diligence in this area is highlighted by the continual cases of reported zoonotic transmission of influenza A viruses between pigs and people, which has received considerable publicity following the H3N2 variant influenza A virus (H3N2v) outbreaks of 2011-2017. Most cases of H3N2v reported have been in youth swine exhibitors associated with agricultural fairs. Building a repertoire of mitigation strategies based on scientific evidence is a key component to the development of sustainable educational programming because it provides a means by which exhibitors can be a part of the solution. Leading transitions is impossible without evidence to support the proposed behavioral changes; therefore data collected from the studies conducted at The Ohio State University have been used to develop a multi-faceted educational program to educate youth on the risk associated with zoonotic disease. Youth involved in swine exhibition are unaware of the risk posed by influenza A viruses, and other zoonotic diseases, that are transmitted between swine and humans. As a result, management practices to prevent transmission events are not being followed and each year humans become infected with influenza A viruses from exposure to exhibition swine. Educating youth about the risks associated and potential mitigation strategies to lessen those risks is being initiated to protect human and animal health. As a result the following research questions were developed. 1) How do youth swine exhibitors’ knowledge about IAVs change when participating in scenario-based training exercises? 2) What predictor variables determine IAV knowledge through scenario-based training exercises? 3) Has the dissemination of the “Swine Zoonotic Disease Risks and Prevention” chapter of the Swine Resource Handbook been effective? 4) How did the “Becoming a Swientist” Program influence the healthy habits of swine exhibitors? 5) What were the perceptions and behaviors of jackpot swine exhibitors related to IAV? Mixed methods were used to evaluate these questions which resulted in significant gains in knowledge and the adoption of healthy habit behaviors. In addition, perceptions and behaviors of jackpot showmen were observed using a survey to determine the effectiveness of recommendations included in the “Measures to Minimize Influenza Transmission at Swine Exhibitions” document. This study provides evidence that developing and disseminating static recommendations to reduce zoonotic disease transmission is not enough to change human behavior and interactive methods must be deployed to prevent future variant IAV infections associated with swine exhibitions. |
