2014.ISDS.Abstracts.Final.pdf


ISDS Annual Conference Proceedings 2014. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-
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ISDS 2014 Conference Abstracts

Community Perceptions on Integrating Animal 
Vaccination and Health Education by Veterinary and 
Public Health Workers in the Prevention of Brucellosis 
among Pastoral Communities of South Western Uganda
Catherine Kansiime*1, Lynn M. Atuyambe1, Victor Guma1, Anthony Mugisha1, Samuel 
Mugisha1, Benon B. Asiimwe1, Innocent B. Rwego2 and Elizeus Rutebemberwa1

1Health Policy Planning and Management, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda; 2University of Minnesota, Minnesota, MN, USA

Objective
To explore community perceptions on integration of animal 

vaccination and health education by veterinary and public health 
workers in the management of brucellosis.

Introduction
Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease of veterinary, public health and 

economic significance in most developing countries, yet there are 
few studies that show integrated human and veterinary health care 
intervention focusing on integration at both activity and actors 
levels. The aim of our study, therefore, was to explore community 
perceptions on integration of animal vaccination and health education 
by veterinary and public health workers in the management of 
brucellosis.

Methods
This study used a qualitative design where six Focus Group 

Discussions (FGDs) that were homogenous in nature were conducted, 
two from each sub-county one with the local leaders, and another 
with pastoralists and farmers. Five Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) 
with two public health workers and three veterinary officers from 
three sub-counties in Kiruhura district were conducted. All FGDs 
were conducted in the local language and tape recorded with consent 
from the participants. KIIs were in English and later transcribed and 
analyzed using latent content data analysis method.

Results
All the groups mentioned that they lacked awareness on brucellosis 

commonly known as ‘brucella’ and its vaccination in animals. 
Respondents perceived improvement in human resources, facilitation 
of the necessary activities such as sensitization of the communities 
about brucellosis, and provision of vaccines and diagnostic kits 
as important in the integration process in the communities. The 
Focus Group Discussion participants also believed that community 
participation was crucial for sustainability and ownership of the 
integration process.

Conclusions
The study reported a limited understanding of brucellosis and its 

vaccination in animals. The community members believed that mass 
animal vaccination in combination with health education about the 
disease is possible if it involves government and all other stakeholders 
such as wildlife authorities, community members, local to national 
political leaders, as well as the technical personnel from both 
veterinary, medical and public health sectors.

Keywords
Brucellosis; Perceptions; Integration; Animal Vaccination; Health 
Education

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful for financial support from International 
Development Research Centre (Canada), all the interview respondents 
who participated in the study, the community leaders and to all the 
research assistants for their contribution to the success of this research.

*Catherine Kansiime
E-mail: cathie.kansiime@gmail.com    

Online Journal of Public Health Informatics * ISSN 1947-2579 * http://ojphi.org * (1):e195, 201