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Six social science-led projects receive funding to help combat infectious disease
Bedouin men and their camels in Wadi Rum, Aqaba, southern Jordan.

Research programme seeks new perspectives on human and animal health challenges

A total of £170,000 has been awarded to six projects which aim to combat infectious disease and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) across the world through a cross-disciplinary approach.

The funding has been awarded by The Bloomsbury SET – a £5 million translational research programme lead by The Royal Veterinary College (RVC) and funded by Research England.

The intention of the programme is to encourage innovative scientific and technical solutions to help protect global human and animal health. The most recent funding call hopes to bring new perspectives on this matter by using a cross-disciplinary approach, focusing on the arts, humanities and social sciences.

The six collaborative projects that will receive funding are:

  • ‘Knowledge exchange through a Bedouin lens: a photovoice exploration of camel owner perceptions of zoonotic disease risk’ – led by Dr Jackie Cardwell
  • ‘Enhancing political economy research skills to tackle infectious disease and AMR challenges’ – led by Dr Mehroosh Tak
  • ‘Assessing social acceptability and economic impact of centralized antibiotic usage data collection for GB cattle farms’ – led by Dr Mehroosh Tak
  • ‘Tackling antimicrobial resistance in rivers: a design-based policy approach’ – led by Dr Naomi Bull
  • ‘Contextualizing antimicrobial resistance perspectives in Sri Lanka and European Union’ – led by Dr Risa Morimoto
  • ‘Visual arts and localised evidence and decision-making’ – led by Dr Polly Savage

Dr Ray Kent, director of research administration at the RVC, said: “The six funded projects represent an exciting opportunity to investigate social and cultural aspects of infectious disease and AMR, which can so easily be overlooked in our rush to identify and implement technology-based solutions.

“We trust that in combination, these studies will lead to genuine insights into how co-designing solutions with local people can reduce costs and encourage shared ownership of challenges in low-resource settings, leading to better outcomes for disease prevention and control.”

For more information on the programme or the funded projects, please click here.

Image (c) Peter Holloway (RVC).

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Reporting service for dead wild birds updated

News Story 1
 The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has updated its online reporting service for dead wild birds.

The new version allows those reporting a dead bird to drop a pin on a map when reporting the location. It also includes a wider range of wild bird species groups to select from when describing the bird.

The online service, which helps APHA to monitor the spread of diseases such as avian influenza, can be accessed here. 

Click here for more...
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NI chief vet urges bluetongue vigilance

Northern Ireland's chief veterinary officer (CVO) has urged farmers to be vigilant for signs of bluetongue, after the Animal and Plant Health Agency warned there was a very high probability of further cases in Great Britain.

There have been 126 confirmed cases of bluetongue virus serotype 3 in England since November 2023, with no cases reported in Northern Ireland. The movement of live ruminants from Great Britain to Northern Ireland is currently suspended.

According to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), the virus is most likely to enter Northern Ireland through infected animals or germplasm (semen or ova) being imported.

Brian Dooher, Northern Ireland's CVO, said: "Surveillance for this disease within Northern Ireland has been increased to assist with detection at the earliest opportunity which will facilitate more effective control measures."

Farmers should report any suspicions of the disease to their private veterinary practitioner, the DAERA Helpline on 0300 200 7840 or their local DAERA Direct Veterinary Office.