The Relevance of AHEM Resources in COVID-19

The Relevance of Animal Health Emergency Management Resources in COVID-19

COVID-19 has certainly demonstrated just how quickly life can change due to forces outside of one’s control. The uncertainty from day to day and for the foreseeable future remains palpable as the human pandemic response continues to evolve and adapt to new knowledge.

In Canada’s livestock industry, lessons have been learned due to managing the unanticipated supply chain bottlenecks created by the pandemic’s impact on the agricultural workforce. New insights around the ripple effects from COVID on industry, as well as awareness of the parallel role of measures, like movement restrictions and contact tracing, in a serious animal disease outbreak, are among the takeaways.

Animal Health Emergency Management (AHEM) project spokesperson Mikki Shatosky said there is a growing recognition of the need for preparedness, be it to manage pandemic impacts or a serious animal health threat like Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD). “Increasingly, people are actively seeking out ways to protect their animals, staff and livelihood,” she said. “A successful response to any emergency hinges on people being prepared and understanding what they are required to do, to effectively manage their operations.”

Producers can have a better understanding of what may occur during a serious animal disease event by using AHEM resources. Developed with and for industry, AHEM’s suite of

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resources are designed to help producers understand, prepare for, and respond to a major emergency event. The latest version of the producer handbooks are available online for downloaded at animalhealth.ca/ahem/project-resources

The latest addition to AHEM’s resources is an online introduction to its popular serious animal disease workshops. A cross-country rollout of this free and informative hour-long webinar started July 28 and runs to September 8. The webinar showcases the AHEM producer handbook and association plan and the in-depth scenario exercises. The schedule is available at https://animalhealth.ca/ahem/workshops/

AHEM resources ensure a consistent approach to managing a major disease event from the grassroots producers and their provincial associations to national industry groups and governments. The goal is to enable a more coordinated response to unanticipated emergency situations, Shatosky said. And while an emergency might mean that little goes according to plan, the heightened awareness of proactive actions at the individual farm level found in AHEM webinars and workshops means producers can respond effectively. “Envisioning scenarios and “what ifs” in the webinars and workshops and discussing or role playing with other involved participants ensures that everyone understands their roles

In addition to providing new resources and creating awareness of these resources, AHEM is developing industry protocols and offering online disease recognition and response training for veterinary professionals.

The human pandemic has many familiar lessons for the livestock industry. Remember, all it takes is one sick sheep or pig anywhere in Canada to spark a serious animal disease outbreak that would put the livestock industry at a standstill, and it’s anyone’s guess for how long. The disruption to production cycles, shipments of animals and products, livestock in transit, the delivery of feed and other essentials would be reminiscent of the backlogs we saw with COVID-19 in processing plants.

The AHEM project is part of ongoing joint efforts between industry and governments to strengthen and protect the 79,000+ livestock operations across the country and help to ensure a sustainable industry.

For more information on the AHEM project, please visit www.animalhealth.ca/ OSN

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