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2020/2021

Health Policy and Diseases with Legal Implications

Code: 102617 ECTS Credits: 5
Degree Type Year Semester
2502445 Veterinary Medicine OB 4 2
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Jordi Casal Fàbrega
Email:
Jordi.Casal@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
catalan (cat)
Some groups entirely in English:
No
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
No
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
No

Teachers

Joaquín Castellà Espuny
Mariano Domingo Álvarez
Margarita Martín Castillo
Alberto Oscar Allepuz Palau

Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites. In any case, it is recommended to review the contents of the following subjects: Animal Health I, II and III and Epidemiology and Statistics

Objectives and Contextualisation

The subject of Health Policy and diseases of Legal Importance is attended during the second semester of the fourth year of the Veterinary Degree and is the continuation of the three subjects of Animal Health. The technical bases for the control of diseases and the different infectious and parasitic diseases that are included in national and international legislation are studied. The training objectives are that the student: 

- Knows the basic concepts of the Health Policy.

- Knows the strategies used in Health Policy to control and eradicate animal diseases.

- Appreciates the application of measures of the Sanitary Policy in specific cases.

- Knows the basic characteristics of diseases with legal significance, especially the clinical signs, diagnosis, control and legislation

Competences

  • Analyse, synthesise and resolve problems and make decisions.
  • Apply scientific method to professional practice, including medicine
  • Diagnose different individual and collective animal diseases, and know about prevention measures, with emphasis on zoonoses and notifiable disease.
  • Have basic knowledge of the profession, and in particular of the organisation and functions of professional practice.
  • Identify, control and eradicate animal diseases, with special emphasis on zoonoses and notifiable disease
  • Recognise ethical obligations in the exercise of responsibilities in terms of the profession and society.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analyse, synthesise and resolve problems and make decisions.
  2. Apply scientific method to professional practice, including medicine
  3. Define the basic concepts and methodology used in the study of animal health.
  4. Describe the basic concepts of healthcare politics.
  5. Distinguish the main parasitical diseases that affect domestic and useful animals.
  6. Distinguish the strategies used in healthcare politics to combat animal diseases.
  7. Evaluate the application of healthcare policy to concrete cases.
  8. Evaluate the importance of infectious and parasitical diseases in the field of animal health, public health and animal productions.
  9. Have basic knowledge of the profession, and in particular of the organisation and functions of professional practice.
  10. Identify the characteristic lesions of diseases in domestic and wild species.
  11. Properly apply anatomopathological nomenclature and use suitable terminology in the field of infectious and contagious diseases.
  12. Recognise personal limitations and know when to ask for professional advice and help.
  13. Recognise the pathogeny of diseases in domestic animals, and establish suitable associations between lesions, etiology and clinical signals.
  14. Use knowledge acquired about the prevention of parasitical zoonoses.

Content

After an introduction on the importance of animal health in the international context and the organisms that are involved, the different methods of fight against diseases in animal populations will be studied. Surveillance and contingency methods will also be studied. The more important aspects related with animal health legislation will be descrived.

In a second part, the diseases subject to control, eradication or notification are studied. Two groups of diseases are studied: exotic -but at risk of presentation- diseases and endemic diseases under control. For each one of them the etiology, pathogenesis, epidemiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, control, prevention and legislation are included.

Lessons:

Health Policy

- Concept, purpose and objectives of the health policy.
- Animal health in the international (the OIE, the EU, the EFSA) and national contexts
- Methods of transmission of diseases between countries and between farms
- Methods to fight against diseases: Quarantine, biosecurity measures, culling of animals, cleaning and disinfection and vaccinations
- Epidemiological surveillance
- Risk analysis of imports
- Basic legislation on animal health
- Herd health legislation in cattle

 Diseases with Legal Implications:
- Foot-and-mouth disease
- Rabies
- Swine fever and other exotic pig diseases
- Blue tongue
- Tuberculosis
- Bovine and ovine brucellosis
- Other diseases of legal significance of ruminants.
- Exotic diseases of equidae.
- Exotic bird diseases
- Exotic parasitic diseases
- Notifiable diseases of bees
- Notifiable diseases of fish

Methodology

Teaching methodology will involve lessons of theory that we will try to make as participative as possible.

We will also do a practical lesson in the computer room to make a risk analysis or to calculate the sensitivity of a surveillance program.

At the same time, students will have to carry out a self-learning job searching information about the situation of a disease in some part of the world and propose a method to control or eradicate the disease in a given country. They will have to present it to their peers in an oral session

Teaching material will be available in the Moodle, which we use to exchange documents between students and teachers.

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Exercice in the computer room 2 0.08 1, 11, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 10, 13, 9, 14, 7, 8
Seminars 4 0.16 11, 3, 4, 6, 5, 10, 13, 14, 7, 8
Theoretical lessons 32 1.28 1, 11, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 10, 13, 12, 9, 14, 7, 8
Type: Supervised      
Tutorial 4 0.16 1, 11, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 10, 13, 12, 14, 7, 8
Type: Autonomous      
Self-learning 20 0.8 1, 11, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 10, 13, 12, 14, 7, 8
Study 59 2.36 1, 11, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 10, 13, 12, 9, 14, 7, 8

Assessment

The final mark is calculated based on:
- Exam of the Health policy part (30% of the mark)
- Exam of the notifiable diseases part (45% of the mark)
The exams will be of multiple choice questions and few short questions. To pass the subject the student must achieve a 5 out of 10 in each exam
Work: Establish a plan to control or eradicate a disease in a region of the world (the has to present the preliminary results in a tutorial and in a final oral presentation, 25% of the note)
The last week the student can repeat the exams that he/she has fail.

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Exam of Health Policy 30% 1 0.04 1, 2, 4, 6, 12, 9, 14, 7
Exam of notifiable diseases 45% 1 0.04 1, 11, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 10, 13, 12, 9, 14, 7, 8
presentation of a work 25% 2 0.08 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 12, 9, 14, 7

Bibliography

- Center for Food security & públic Health. Animal disease information. http://www.cfsph.iastate.edu/DiseaseInfo/?species[]=002&lang=en
- Maclachlan N.J., Dubovi E.J. (2011). Fenner's Veterinary Virology (Fourth Edition) Elsevier. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/book/9780123751584OIE (2012).
- OIE (2019). Código Sanitario para los Animales Terrestres. 28a edición. Accés en línia: http://www.oie.int/es/normas-internacionales/codigo-terrestre/acceso-en-linea/
- Constable P, Hinchcliff KW, Done S, Gruenberg W. (2016). Veterinary Medicine: A textbook of the diseases of cattle, horses, sheep, pigs and goats, 11ed. Elsevier
- Toma B., Dufour B., Sanaa M., Bénet J.J., Ellis P., Moutou F., Louza A. (1999). Applied veterinary epidemiology and the control of disease in populations. Ed. AEEMA (Maisons-Alfort, France). També en francès: Épidémiologie appliquée à la lutte collective contre les maladies animales transmissibles majeures. AEEMA. Paris