D3321: Assessment of knowledge and practices of licensed clinical veterinarians in the United States on zoonotic diseases

Zoonotic diseases account for 60% of all recognized human diseases and 75% of emerging infectious diseases. As veterinarians are an important frontline group that are at risk of contracting zoonoses, we wanted to assess their awareness and current practices. An online survey instrument was developed and administered via Qualtrics and disseminated to licensed clinical veterinarians in the United States. We received 466 responses from 36 US states, 67% of the respondents were female and 72.5% were small animal medicine practitioners. Most participants were familiar with the One Health concept, 51.3% responded knowing about CE training on zoonotic diseases and 68% had attended such a training in the last 5 years. Overall, 46.8% respondents reported diagnosing a zoonosis in their patients weekly, but respondents were not aware of which zoonoses to report to public health departments. Participants reported being personally diagnosed with zoonotic diseases originating from their practice, with dermatophytosis being the most diagnosed. Only 27% of respondents had professional relationships with physicians. We also found that veterinarians across practice locations and veterinary medicine type did not follow standardized infection control measures, which puts them at risk for zoonoses. Regular training and updated information on zoonoses that is easily available to veterinarians, increased opportunities for communication between veterinarians and other medical/public health professionals and ensuring that all veterinarians follow standardized operations are crucial steps to reduce zoonosis risk among this population.