OSU offers bioterrorism training for veterinarians

Monday, July 17, 2006

Oklahoma State University’s Center for Veterinary Health Sciences will offer a pair of bioterrorism training sessions for veterinarians in the state.

Presented by the CVHS and the Oklahoma Department of Health, the daylong workshops are recommended for small animals, equine, food animals, and mixed veterinary practitioners. Participants will receive seven hours of veterinary continuing education credit.

The first session will be held Aug. 11 at the CVHS on OSU’s Stillwater campus. The second session at the Noble Research Center Pavilion in Ardmore will be held Aug. 26. Both begin at 8 a.m. and conclude at 4:30 p.m.; pre-registration is required by July 27.

Participants will be presented with three scenarios: 1) a veterinary hospital outbreak of a zoonotic disease; 2) an emerging infectious disease threat in the practice community; and 3) an agri-terrorism incident. The interactive sessions will inform veterinarians about notification and sample submission procedures in the event of a diagnosis or outbreak, as well as effective containment and human health concerns.

A panel including Drs. Kristy Bradley, Oklahoma Department of Health; Leslie Cole, Oklahoma Department of Agriculture; and Grant Rezabek from the Oklahoma Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory at OSU will attend the workshops and participate in discussions about best practices for the three incident scenarios. Drs. Becky Morton, D.L. Step and John Kirkpatrick from the CVHS will facilitate.

Registration, materials, laboratory submission supplies and lunch are complimentary due to a Centers for Disease Control grant. For more information, contact the CVHS continuing education office at 405-744-7672.