The public health rotation is designed for professional veterinary students in their senior year. This two week course explores various contemporary public health issues related to the veterinary profession, and global public health in general, through discussions, lectures, field-trips, student papers and presentations, and multi-media venues. Veterinarians have extensive training and expertise that directly relates to the protection of human and animal health alike. Clients, human healthcare professionals, civic organizations, schools, neighbors and others will look to them for professional assistance on specific public health matters, and the veterinarians, in turn, should provide sound, scientific advice and recommendations. This course helps the new veterinarian fulfill his/her obligation in the protection of public health and become part of the solution. Topics generally covered in this course are: zoonoses education for clients and staff, liability and zoonoses, current events in public health, HIV/AIDS and the practitioner, malaria, food safety, travel health, rabies, milk safety, water quality, career opportunities, and others.

This three credit course for second year veterinary students emphasizes the importance of the veterinary profession in promoting and enhancing the health of humans through the application and knowledge of epidemiology, zoonoses, environmental and occupational health, food safety and hygiene, and various other public health disciplines

The Epidemiology Elective for Senior Veterinary Students at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This elective provides an introduction to preventive medicine, public health and the principles of applied epidemiology within the working atmosphere of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Students are assigned to a branch and department and work closely with CDC scientific staff and “disease detectives” on current public health problems. Students may also take part in outbreak investigations away from their assigned “home base.” Students will work on a project of public health significance while at the CDC and submit a report of their project/activities upon completion, in addition to meeting with the instructor for a debriefing upon their return. More information.

A course to be taught fall 2008 at Des Moines University, Des Moines, IA, in their Master of Public Health program. Approximately 80% of this two-credit course is taught through web-based methodology. This course provides an overview of veterinary medicine and its role in public health. The course is intended to educate the students on topics such as epidemiology, food safety, disease eradication, zoonotic diseases, and emerging diseases, stressing the role of the veterinarian in the public health response in all of them. The course will also explore career opportunities for veterinarians in the field of public health. Information on the idea of “One Health” will be expressed to the students to help them understand how veterinary medicine and human medicine compliment one another.

This course explores current issues and concepts of food safety in the U.S., from plant to table. Foodborne illness from various microbial agents, food toxins and adulterants, as well as disease investigations, risk analysis, risk mitigation and prevention are covered. This is a University of Iowa, School of Public Health, course and is part of their distance MPH degree for veterinarians and veterinary students. I am course coordinator. The course is taught over 2 weeks using multiple instructors and will be held on the campus of Iowa State University, Ames, in June 2008.

A course designed for, and taught at, the Center for Homeland Defense and Security, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California, for their MA program. When compared to other industries, agriculture is unmatched in terms of both its revenue and its scope. Vital to the U.S. economy and inherent to the American way of life, agriculture is also a potential target of terrorists. As such, it is deserving of the same high level of concern and protection against attack that many other assets in our nation receive from federal and state homeland security agencies. This course introduces the student to the workings of agriculture, food processing, the regulatory agencies involved, import/export, and the vulnerabilities of agriculture to intentional and unintentional introduction of harmful agents. Real life examples will be used to highlight these points. In addition, pertinent legislation related to agriculture security will be covered. Agroterrorism in both modern and historical terms will also be discussed. Finally, the roles of federal and state agencies in responding to an agricultural emergency will be examined.

Two-weeks of lecture on bioterrorism and agroterrorism and the veterinarian, this course is designed as an elective course for DVM students in the MPH program at St. George's University, St. George, Grenada. The goal of the course is to provide students with basic knowledge on zoonoses as agents of purposeful or accidental causes of disaster, their impact on human health and their prevention and control strategies. The course is also designed to enhance student problem solving skills, team work, and oral and written communication skills. Coordinating professor is Dr. Rohini Roopnarine, St. George's University.