Assessing COVID-19 pandemic risk perception and response preparedness in veterinary and animal care workers.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Agnew J ; Barnett DJ ; Beasley EA ; Dalton KR ; Davis MF ; Falke JR ; Ferradas C ; Guyer KM ; Laughlin P ; Meza K ; Nuzzo JB ; Schiaffino F
• Description:
  Veterinary and animal care workers perform critical functions in biosecurity and public health, yet little has been done to understand the unique needs and barriers these workers face when responding during a pandemic crisis. In this article, we evaluated the perceived risks and roles of veterinary and animal care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic and explored barriers and facilitators in their readiness, ability, and willingness to respond during a pandemic. We deployed a survey targeting US veterinary medical personnel, animal shelter and control workers, zoo and wildlife workers, and other animal care workers. Data were collected on respondents' self-reported job and demographic factors, perceptions of risk and job efficacy, and readiness, ability, and willingness to respond during the pandemic. We found that leadership roles and older age had the strongest association with decreased perceived risk and improved job efficacy and confidence, and that increased reported contact level with others (both coworkers and the public) was associated with increased perceived risk. We determined that older age and serving in leadership positions were associated with improved readiness, willingness, and ability to respond. Veterinary and animal care workers' dedication to public health response, reflected in our findings, will be imperative if more zoonotic vectors of SARS-CoV-2 arise. Response preparedness in veterinary and animal care workers can be improved by targeting younger workers not in leadership roles through support programs that focus on improving job efficacy and confidence in safety protocols. These findings can be used to target intervention and training efforts to support the most vulnerable within this critical, yet often overlooked, workforce. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Animals Communicable Diseases Disaster Planning Emergencies Health Personnel Occupational Health Public Health Risk Assessment Safety Veterinarians
• Keywords:
  Animal Handlers; Animals; Veterinary Medicine; Veterinarians; Public Health; Coronavirus; COVID-19; Infectious Diseases; Emergency Preparedness; Risk Management; Author Keywords: COVID-19; Pandemic Preparedness; Ready, Willing, And Able Model; Veterinary And Animal Care Occupation; Occupational Health; Public Health Preparedness/Response
• ISSN:
  2326-5094
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Maryland ; OSHA Region 3
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  116-126
• Volume:
  20
• Issue:
  2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20065502
• Citation:
  Health Secur 2022 Apr; 20(2):116-126
• Contact Point Address:
  Meghan F. Davis, PhD, VMD, MPH, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe St, E7612, Baltimore, MD 20205
• Email:
  mdavis65@jhu.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2022
• Performing Organization:
  Johns Hopkins University
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Health Security
• End Date:
  20280630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:734ed209d060f571651fd7a3b4d4c916d9aa6653ef62b31aeb5290bfddb88d97eb6c730c05288d6d5965882fd502c5779174d842500f0dd2bb5e852300f45e65
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/248563/cdc_248563_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 213.49 KB ]