Mission Rabies Goa Monthly Report – March 2018
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Mission Rabies Goa Monthly Report – March 2018 Vaccination Total number of dogs vaccinated in March 2018 = 9,090 The temperatures in Goa have really started to rise but it has not deterred the Mission Rabies teams from vaccinating over 9,000 dogs in March 2018. Both the North and South squads have worked extremely hard and are progressing really well through the regions. The South squad (Figure 1) are expected to complete Ponda Taluka at the beginning of April 2018 and the map below (Figure 2) shows the vaccination coverage achieved in Ponda during March 2018. The North squad (Figure 3) are also hoping to complete Tiswadi Taluka towards the end of next month and the map in Figure 4 highlights the total vaccinations administered during March 2018. The areas marked in red are yet to be completed. Figure 1. Members of the Mission Rabies South squad hand-catching 1 Ponda Taluka Monthly Vaccination Coverage Figure 2. Ponda Taluka – Total vaccination coverage March 2018 Figure 3. One of the teams from the Mission Rabies North squad. Four dogs caught at the same time! 2 Tiswadi Taluka Monthly Vaccination Coverage Figure 4. Tiswadi Taluka – Total vaccination coverage March 2018 Rabies Surveillance, Testing and Research Total number of positive rabies cases in March 2018 = 3 The MR/WVS Rabies Response Team attended to ten suspected rabies cases during March 2018. Three were confirmed positive on post mortem and six were negative. One dog was placed in quarantine and as no signs of rabies developed the dog is due to be returned to its original location next week. The table below summarises the positive cases. Neutered Owned or Date of rabies case Taluk Ward/Area Male/Female Age or entire Stray 04.03.18 (Karnataka) Gokarna Female Entire 5 months Stray 04.03.18 Bardez Candolim Female Entire 5 months Stray 17.03.18 Pernem Virona Male Entire 3 years Owned 3 One of the positive rabies cases was a five month old puppy (Figure 5) which had been brought to Goa all the way from Karnataka by a Ukrainian family who were on holiday. They had been caring for the puppy when she started to become sick and bit their two year old son. As they could not find a local vet or NGO they travelled all the way (133 kms) in a taxi. They were not aware of the risk of rabies and it was only when they took the puppy to an NGO in Goa – GoaGPRS that concerns were raised. GoaGPRS immeadiately contacted Mission Rabies and the team collected the puppy. It was confirmed positive for rabies and the family were advised to go for immadiate post exposure prophylaxis. Figure 5. Rabid puppy travelled from Karnataka to Goa with a family from Ukraine March was an exciting month for Mission Rabies as Dr Gowri Yale our Scientific and Technical Manager travelled from Goa to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. The CDC is the leading national public health institute of the United States and they conducted a workshop on rabies elimination (Figure 6). The workshop was well attended with participants from various countries including Guatemala, Georgia, Ethiopia, India, Canada, Bangladesh, Haiti and the United Kingdom (Figure 7). The workshop focused on data management, tools for campaign planning, integrated bite case management (IBCM) 4 and the WVS data collection app. In addition to the workshop, Dr Gowri received hands on training (Figure 8) and underwent a refresher course on Direct Fluorescent Antibody Testing from Dr Lillian (Figure 9) and Crystal from the CDC rabies diagnostic laboratory. Figure 6. CDC Rabies elimination workshop 2018 Figure 7. Workshop participants including Dr GowrI Yale and Dr Andy Gibson (UK) Figure 8. Dr Gowri hands-on training in the CDC laboratory Figure 9. CDC’s Dr Lillian giving Dr Gowri a refresher course on rabies diagnostics Team Structure This month the Mission Rabies teams bid farewell to Dr Shruti and Dr Anahita. Both were excellent team leaders and took to their roles with great enthusiasm. Dr Shruti was replaced by Dr Cathrina (Figure 10) and Dr Anahita was replaced by Dr Manvir (Figure 11). This is Dr Cathrina’s third time working with the Mission Rabies teams and both doctors will work with Mission Rabies for five to six weeks as part of their WVS veterinary rotation. 5 Figure 10. Dr Cathrina returns for her third Figure 11. Dr Manvir with animal handler - Bulu rotation with Mission Rabies Education Team The education teams have continued to work alongside the vaccination teams raising community awareness about rabies and our vital vaccination work. Joan Fernandes - Education Officer for South Goa was extremely fortunate to be able to sensitise 162 anganwadi workers in Ponda taluka (Figure 12). Anganwadi is a type of rural mother and child care centre and they had all gathered in the local panchayat to commemorate International Women’s Day. Dr Murugan also held an educational seminar at Sunshine International School in Old Goa, Tiswadi Taluka (Figure 13). In addition to the school programme, Dr Murugan and the educations team have been extremely busy this month presenting at various meetings which were organised for the local authorities. The Block Development Offices (BDO’s) and Panchayat members were targeted as they oversee the vaccination certification in their areas and it is crucial they are well informed regarding Mission Rabies and all of the vaccination activities. BDO’s in five talukas across Goa were reached during March 2018 (Figures 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18). 6 Figure 12. 162 Anganwadi workers were sensitised by Joan – South Goa Education Officer in Ponda Taluka on Women’s Day Figure 13. Dr Murugan educating the students at Sunshine International School in Old Goa 7 Figure 14. Dr Murugan presenting at the Panjim BDO meeting Figure 15. Dr Murugan presenting at the Bardez BDO meeting Figure 16. Rakesh – Education officer representing Mission Rabies to Salcete BDO 8 Figure 17. Ashok – North Goa Education Officer representing Mission Rabies at Pernem BDO Figure 18. Joan representing Mission Rabies at the Mormugao BDO 9 Presentations The North Goa District Level Meeting was held on the 13th March 2018 to review the work of Mission Rabies. Julie Corfmat, Project Manager presented on the past six months achievements of Mission Rabies (vaccination and education), challenges faced, possible solutions and forward plan. Dr Gowri Yale also gave an excellent and in-depth presentation (Figure 19) on rabies cases, surveliiance, testing, workshops with the Department of Health and the introduction of IBCM. The meeting was very positive with great feedback and support from all attendees. Figure 19. Dr Gowri and Project Manager Julie presented at the North District Meeting Other News On Tuesday 27th March 2018, Dr Murugan – Mission Rabies Director of Education, was invited to an exclusive meeting with the Chief Officer of Vasco Municipality in Mormugao Taluka, South Goa. The subject of the meeting was ‘dog registration’ and technical support was requested from Mission Rabies (Figure 20). Although there is still a long way to go to ensure dog registration is properly implemented, organised, effective, monitored, sustainable and most importantly positive for animal welfare this is a great first step which the local authorities have taken. If properly introduced, it could lead to the abandonment of less puppies in markets and encourage more dog owners to have their dogs sterilised and vaccinated. Most of the owned dogs in Goa are free-roaming on the streets and the dog registration scheme implemented by the Government of Goa would aim to encourage more responsible pet ownership, in addition to controlling the dog population and helping to eliminate rabies. 10 Figure 20. Article on dog registration published in the Times of India for which Mission Rabies offered technical support Mission Rabies Rescues In Febraury 2018, one of the vaccination teams rescued a dog with a wire snare embedded round her abdomen (Figure 21 and 22). She was taken to a local NGO – People for Animals (PFA) in Ponda and has since made a full recovery. Figures 23 to 28 show her progress and release by Mission Rabies back to the exact location where she was found. Figure 21. Injued dog safely caught using a net Figure 22. Wire snare caused significant injury 11 Figure 23. Wound completely healed Figure 24. The rescue team with Dr Srinivas who treated the dog at PFA in Ponda Figure 25. Leaving PFA Figure 26. Placed in the Mission Rabies vehicle ready for release Figure 27. The release site Figure 28. So happy to be back! 12 During March 2018, another vaccinton team came across a puppy covered in tar (Figures 29 and 30). The puppy was rescued and taken to South Goa Welfare Trust for Animals in Margao where he is currently undergoing treatment for the sores on his skin. Figure 29. Puppy found unable to move and covered in tar Figure 30. Rescued by the team Another stray dog caught by one of the vaccinaton teams had a large tumour on the inside of his hind leg (Figure 31). He was taken to another NGO – GoaGPRS where he underwent a lengthy surgery to remove the tumour (Figures 32 and 33). He is now recovering from the operation and has commenced chemotherpy. The local person who alerted the team to the dog has offered to adopt him once has completed his treatment. Figure 31. Stray dog in need of help Figure 32. Large tumour on hind leg Figure 33. Surgery at local NGO None of these rescues would be possible without the help and support of the local NGO’s.