FETPV Indonesia looks forward to strengthening support on evidence-based animal health policies
The Field Epidemiology Training Program for Veterinarians in Indonesia (FETPV / PELVI - Program Epidemiologi Lapangan Veteriner Indonesia) concluded its third stakeholder meeting recently. The meeting aimed to update stakeholders on FETPV progress since its launch in May 2017. Thirty invitees representing the Government of Indonesia, partner universities, academia, epidemiology experts and NGOs eagerly discussed challenges and opportunities to be addressed in the 2019 work plan.
The Director of Animal Health, Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) officially opened the meeting by highlighting the urgency of strengthening epidemiology capacity in the animal health sector. “Field epidemiology provides us with the up-to-date data which will support government’s evidence-based policies. Reliable data ensures effective policy making to overcome challenges in animal health”, said Drh. Fadjar Sumping Tjatur Rasa.
His sentiments were echoed by leaders from MoA Disease Investigation Centers (DICs) who specifically mentioned the practical impacts of field veterinary epidemiology training on accomplishing the main DIC tasks of regional investigation laboratories. The principal duties of these laboratories include conducting animal disease surveillance, outbreak investigation and advising senior government officials on disease control policy and response strategies. The participants included representatives from eight DICs across Indonesia, six of which were represented by their respective directors, showing strong support for the sustainability of the program. Each DIC is responsible for animal health detection and control in several provinces within its region.
Recognizing the important contribution of field epidemiology to disease control, Dr. Luuk Schoonman, Chief Technical Advisor FAO ECTAD Indonesia conveyed FAO’s strong support to the PELVI training program whose first cohort of nineteen trainees has now completed three out of the four FETPV modules. Prior to the establishment of PELVI, seven Indonesian field epidemiologists participated in the FAO regional FETPV training programme in Thailand. “FAO has been supporting the development of PELVI with help from experienced trainers who are involved in the regional Thai FETPV program, a leading veterinary epidemiology programme in the Asia Pacific region. This support is part of the Emerging Pandemic Threats (EPT-2) programme funded by USAID”.
Dr. Schoonman added that FAO has supported five Indonesian government veterinarians to follow the PELVI Master’s degree program in epidemiology at Gadjah Mada University starting in August 2018 with funding provided by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Dr. I Nyoman Kandun, Director of the Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) at the Indonesian Ministry of Health stressed that PELVI has enabled veterinary epidemiology training to be conducted in Indonesia, thus he hoped that more Indonesians will be equipped with field epidemiology skills.
Indonesia still faces complex geographic and human resource challenges in controlling animal diseases, which create a greater need to have more veterinarians well-trained in field epidemiology. PELVI provides a proven training model, with minimum skills standards, which is also flexible and adaptable to close the epidemiology capacity gap in Indonesia, a country considered as a hotspot for emerging infectious diseases (EIDs).
However, Indonesia does not stand alone in facing EIDs, which pose a serious threat to the whole South East Asia region. “Regional initiatives and learning exchange should be promoted. Thailand, China, Vietnam and Indonesia are among the most advanced countries in the region to provide improved field epidemiology capacity and share each other’s experiences to build better capacity and improve animal disease control,” said Dr. Karoon Chanachai who shared Thailand’s experience in completing a national FETPV training programme ahead of Indonesia.
To improve the continuity and sustainability of PELVI in 2019, the stakeholders identified several issues to be addressed such as potential domestic funding alternatives; official government certification; and strategies to ensure full participation in the trainings. Each PELVI training module comprises of four sub-modules delivered over three weeks of full-time learning per module at the training center, while participants continue to conduct their daily official duties as civil servants. Following the stakeholder meeting, PELVI held a training course for national PELVI mentors up to December 6, 2018.