Dataset Information

Owners' Knowledge and Approaches to Colic in Working Equids in Honduras.

ABSTRACT: In Honduras, many families are reliant on working equids in their daily life. The aim of this study was to evaluate knowledge about, and approaches to colic used by owners of working equids in Choluteca, Honduras using a phenomenological approach. Semi-structured, verbal questionnaires were conducted with ninety-three owners from eleven different communities in the Choluteca region on equid horse owners' knowledge of colic and treatments. Additional context was gained through observations and verbal questionnaires with three veterinary practitioners and eight agricultural pharmacy (agrovet) store owners. Working equids were commonly used for firewood collection 31% (40/126), transportation 24% (30/126), and carrying crops 13% (17/126). Thirty-eight percent of owners (35/92) said they did not know what colic was, 27% (24/89) could not name any clinical signs, and 46% (42/92) could not name any causes. Most owners with previous experience of colic had treated it themselves 79% (53/67), typically using herbal remedies. Colic was a major concern for owners of working equids who had prior experience or knowledge of the condition. Knowledge and understanding of colic varied, and access to evidence-based treatments was very limited. The findings will be used to inform the development of educational resources on colic in working equids.

SUBMITTER: Wild I

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8300094 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Owners' Knowledge and Approaches to Colic in Working Equids in Honduras.

Wild Isabella I Freeman Sarah S Robles Daniela D Matamoros Dennis D Ortiz Maverick M Rodriguez Jonathan J Burford John J

Animals : an open access journal from MDPI 20210713 7

In Honduras, many families are reliant on working equids in their daily life. The aim of this study was to evaluate knowledge about, and approaches to colic used by owners of working equids in Choluteca, Honduras using a phenomenological approach. Semi-structured, verbal questionnaires were conducted with ninety-three owners from eleven different communities in the Choluteca region on equid horse owners' knowledge of colic and treatments. Additional context was gained through observations and ve ...[more]

PMID: 34359215

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Project description:BackgroundColic is the most common emergency problem in the horse. An owner's ability to recognise colic and seek assistance is a critical first step in determining case outcome.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to assess horse owners' knowledge and opinions on recognising colic.Study designCross-sectional study.MethodsAn online questionnaire was distributed to horse owners with open and closed questions on their knowledge of normal clinical parameters in the horse, confidence and approach to recognising colic (including assessment through case scenarios), and their demographics. Descriptive and chi squared statistical analyses were performed.ResultsThere were 1564 participants. Many respondents either did not know or provided incorrect estimates for their horse's normal clinical parameters: only 45% (n = 693/1540) gave correct normal values for heart rate, 45% (n = 694/1541) for respiratory rate and 67% (n = 1028/1534) for rectal temperature. Knowledge of normal values was statistically associated with participants' educational qualifications (P<0.01). Owners said if they suspected their horse had colic they would assess faecal output (76%; n = 1131/1486), gastrointestinal sounds (75%; n = 1113/1486), respiratory rate (65%; n = 967/1486) and heart rate (54%; n = 797/1486). There was a lack of consensus on whether to call a vet for behavioural signs of colic, unless the signs were severe or persistent. The majority of participants (61%) were confident that they could recognise most types of colic. In the case scenarios, 49% were confident deciding that a surgical case had colic, but 9% were confident deciding an impaction case had colic.Main limitationsMost respondents were UK based; risk of self-selection bias for owners with previous experience of colic.ConclusionsThere was marked variation in horse owners' recognition and responses to colic, and significant gaps in knowledge. This highlights the need for the development of accessible educational resources to support owners' decision-making.

Project description:Reasons for performing studyWorking horses, donkeys and mules suffer from numerous diseases and clinical problems. However, there is little information on what owners perceive as important health concerns in their working animals.ObjectivesTo identify and prioritise with owners the diseases and other health concerns in working equids in central Ethiopia using participatory methodologies.Study designParticipatory situation analysis (PSA).MethodsThe study was conducted with carthorse- and donkey-owners in 16 sites in central Ethiopia. Multiple participatory methodologies were utilised, including ranking, matrices and focus group discussions. Owners' perceptions on frequency, importance, morbidity and mortality of volunteered diseases and the clinical signs that owners attributed to each disease were obtained; information regarding the impact of these diseases and health concerns was also sought.ResultsA total of 40 separate disease and health problems were volunteered by carthorse- and donkey-owners. Horse-owners volunteered a musculoskeletal syndrome (with the local name 'bird', clinical signs suggest possible disease pathologies including equine exertional rhabdomyolysis), colic and epizootic lymphangitis most frequently, whereas donkey-owners volunteered sarcoids, nasal discharge and wounds to occur most frequently. One problem (coughing) was volunteered frequently by both horse- and donkey-owners. Owners demonstrated knowledge of differing manifestations and severity of these problems, which resulted in differing impacts on the working ability of the animal.ConclusionsAlthough many of the diseases and clinical signs had been previously reported, this study also identified some previously unreported priorities such as rabies in donkeys, an unidentified musculoskeletal syndrome in horses and respiratory signs in both horses and donkeys. The information gathered during this participatory study with owners may be used to inform future veterinary and educational programme interventions, as well as identify future research priorities.

Project description:The objectives of this study were to evaluate the efficacy of several knowledge-transfer interventions about donkey health, utilizing a cluster-randomized controlled trial (c-RCT), on the long-term knowledge change (~6 months post intervention) of Ethiopian rural working equid owners. Knowledge transfer interventions included: an audio programme, a village meeting and a diagrammatic hand-out, which were also compared to a control group, which received no intervention. All interventions addressed identical learning objectives. Thirty-two villages were randomly selected and interventions randomly assigned to blocks of eight villages. All participants in a village received the same intervention, and knowledge levels were assessed by questionnaire administration both pre and post intervention. Data analysis included multilevel linear and logistic regression models (allowing for clustering of individuals within villages) to evaluate the change in knowledge between the different knowledge-transfer interventions, and to look at other factors associated with change in knowledge. A total of 516 randomly selected participants completed pre-intervention questionnaires, 476 undertook a post-dissemination questionnaire ~6 months later, a follow-up response rate of 92%. All interventions significantly improved the overall knowledge score on the post intervention questionnaire compared to the control group, with the diagrammatic hand-out [coefficient (coef) 10.0, S.E. = 0.5] and the village meeting (coef 8.5, S.E = 0.5) having a significantly greater impact than the audio programme (coef 4.0, S.E = 0.5). There were differences in learning across interventions, learning objectives, age and education levels of the participants. Participants with higher levels of formal education had greater knowledge change but this varied across interventions. In conclusion, knowledge of donkey health was substantially increased by a diagrammatic hand-out and the impact of this simple, low-cost intervention should be further evaluated in other communities in low-income countries. This study should assist in the design and development of effective knowledge-transfer materials for adult learning for rural villagers in low-income countries.

Project description:Recently, the need for a more holistic approach to welfare assessment has been highlighted. This is particularly pertinent in the case of working equids who provide vital support for human livelihoods, often in low- to middle-income countries, yet suffer from globally low standards of welfare. This study aimed to provide insight into the welfare status and traditional use of working equids in rural Western European communities using the new EARS welfare tool, designed to provide a broad view of the welfare of working equids and the context in which they are found. Other questions on the topics of equid management practices, social transmission of expertise, environmental stressors, and traditions, alongside physical and behavioural welfare assessments were also included to explore the impact of these wide-ranging factors on an understudied population of working equids. The protocol was trialled on 60 working equid owners from communities in Portugal and Spain where, despite the decline in traditional agricultural practices and livestock keeping, donkeys and mules remain working animals. Many owners stated that the help donkeys provided was invaluable, and donkeys were considered to be important for both farming and daily life. However, participants also recognised that the traditional agricultural way of life was dying out, providing insights into the traditional practices, community structure, and beliefs of equid owners. Questions investigating the social networks and social transfer of information within the villages were effective in finding local sources of equid knowledge. Overall, welfare was deemed fair, and the protocol enabled the identification of the most prevalent welfare problems within the communities studied, in this case obesity and the use of harmful practices. The findings suggest that the new protocol was feasible and detail how contextual factors may influence equid welfare. Increasing understanding of the cultural context, social structure, and attitudes within a community, alongside more traditional investigations of working practices and animal management, may, in the future, help to make equid welfare initiatives more effective.

Project description:BackgroundInfluenza during pregnancy may cause serious neonatal outcomes including stillbirth, fetal distress, preterm birth, congenital abnormalities, and stunted growth. Pregnant women are the highest priority group for seasonal influenza vaccination, but low coverage has been repeatedly reported in this population. Understanding reasons for and for not receiving the seasonal influenza vaccine is needed to design communication strategies to increase vaccination coverage. This study aimed to describe knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of seasonal influenza vaccination among women giving birth in public maternity hospitals in Honduras.MethodsFrom August 20-October 8, 2018, we conducted a cross-sectional KAP survey regarding seasonal influenza vaccinations to a sample of postpartum women who gave birth in maternity hospitals and clinics from the Ministry of Health of Honduras and Honduran Social Security Institute. We reported frequency distributions for demographics, KAP of influenza vaccine, and vaccination coverage. We used logistic regression to analyze unadjusted and adjusted associations between sociodemographic characteristics and influenza vaccination.ResultsWe surveyed 842 postpartum women in 17 healthcare facilities. Of 534 postpartum women with term pregnancy and verified vaccinations, 417 (78.1%; 95% CI: 74.6-81.6%) were vaccinated for influenza. Factors associated with verified influenza vaccination included receipt of vaccination recommendations by a healthcare worker during prenatal check-ups (aOR: 16.46; 95% CI: 9.73-27.85), concurrent chronic disease (aOR: 5.00; 95% CI: 1.25-20.07), and influenza vaccination of other children in the household (aOR: 2.28; 95% CI: 1.19-4.39). The most cited reasons for vaccination were perceived benefits for both mother and infant and easy access. Reasons for non-vaccination were: vaccine was not offered and fear of side effects, harm to the infant, and needles or pain caused by injection.ConclusionInfluenza vaccination was well received among postpartum women in Honduras. Increasing clinician recommendations for vaccination and assuring the vaccine is readily available to women during prenatal visits may increase vaccination rates.

Project description:BackgroundSeasonal influenza is a highly contagious vaccine-preventable disease that may cause high morbidity and mortality in susceptible populations. Healthcare workers are a priority group for seasonal influenza vaccination to protect them from contracting influenza and prevent nosocomial transmission to patients. This study aimed to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of seasonal influenza vaccination among healthcare workers in Honduras.MethodFrom August 24 to October 21, 2018, we conducted a cross-sectional KAP survey regarding seasonal influenza vaccination to a random sample of healthcare workers who attended patients in hospitals of the Ministry of Health of Honduras (SESAL) and Honduran Social Security Institute (IHSS). We reported frequency distributions of demographics, vaccination KAP, sources of information, and reasons for non-vaccination. We used principal components factor analysis to create knowledge and attitude scores. We used linear regression to analyze associations between demographics and sources of information about the influenza vaccine, and knowledge and attitude scores. We used logistic regression to analyze associations between demographics, sources of information, knowledge scores, and attitude scores, and influenza vaccination.ResultWe surveyed 947 healthcare workers who attended patients in 13 SESAL hospitals and two IHSS hospitals. Only 4.6% of participants knew the seasonal influenza vaccine was composed of inactivated viruses, 94.7% believed vaccination causes flu-like symptoms, and 52.0% were vaccinated for influenza in 2018. Knowledge scores were lower for nursing assistants and other healthcare professionals compared to doctors, and higher for healthcare workers who attended a healthcare facility training (P-values≤0.030). Attitude scores were higher for healthcare workers who attended ≥11 patients per day having ≤10 patients per day as reference, self-reported influenza vaccination in previous year, and cited trainings and informal information at the healthcare facility as sources of information for influenza vaccination (P-values≤0.030). Factors associated with self-reported vaccination were self-reported influenza vaccination in previous year (aOR: 7.61; 95% CI: 5.24-11.04), attitude score (aOR: 1.14; 95% CI: 1.07-1.21), and worked in a SESAL hospital (aOR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.12-2.68) having IHSS as reference.ConclusionAlthough influenza vaccination is required by law in Honduras and available for free in public health centers, coverage of healthcare workers in 2018 was half that reported in 2017. Lower coverage may be attributed to misconceptions of vaccination side effects.

Dataset Information

Owners' Knowledge and Approaches to Colic in Working Equids in Honduras.

Publications

Owners' Knowledge and Approaches to Colic in Working Equids in Honduras.

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