The Vet as a Fomite
A medical definition of a fomite is "an inanimate object... that may be contaminated with infectious organisms and serve in their transmission."[1] Thus, as a vet handles multiple clients per day, they themselves can act as an animate fomite; more specific examples may include: clothing, footwear, feed and water bowls, needles, collars, leads, and more.[2]
Biosecurity
While definitions of biosecurity have differed over time according to the field being discussed, it is broadly termed within the veterinary world as "an approach designed to prevent or decrease the transmission of naturally occurring infectious diseases and pests in crops and livestock."[3] As a minimum, this approach should include hand washing to the standard of the World Health Organization[4] Further procedures would depend on the environment, for example using a boot scrub and foot dip before entering or leaving a farm. The correct use of PPE will also contribute to good biosecurity practices, which will minimise instances of the vet acting as a fomite as much as possible.
Zoonoses
In the interest of public health, biosecurity becomes paramount when considering the possible transition of zoonoses, initially from animals to their vets, and secondarily from vets to members of the general public, whereby the vet would, once again, be acting as a fomite. This is a much larger scale threat than is realized; there are approximately 40 zoonotic diseases in the UK, and numbers in the region of the hundreds of thousands have the potential to be affected.
References
- ↑ Merrian-Webster Medical Dictionary Fomite http://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/fomite (Accessed 28 October 2015)
- ↑ Sharon Hunt Gerardo, PhD, DVM, MPVM (2011) 'Fomite Transmission – Reducing the Risk for Small Animal Facilities' Veterinary Infection Control Services http://vet-ics.com/1/post/2011/07/fomite-transmission-reducing-the-risk-for-small-animal-facilities.html (Accessed 28 October 2015)
- ↑ Koblentz, G.D. (2010) 'Biosecurity Reconsidered' International Security 34(3) pp.96-132
- ↑ World Health Organization Clean hands protect against infection http://www.who.int/gpsc/clean_hands_protection/en/ (Accessed 28 October 2015)