Veterinarians care for animals and people: The holistic approach of One Health in practice

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Despoina Iatridou

Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVE), Belgium

: J Vet Sci Med Diagn

Abstract

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Medicine is the science dealing with the maintenance and restoration of health. Health professionals, like doctors and veterinarians, strive to ensure human health, animal health and public health. Nowadays doctors and veterinarians are called upon considering One Health as the key for ensuring health and sustainability for our world in the future. The World Health Organization (WHO) has defined health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. One Health recognizes that the health of humans and animals as well as their ecosystems are interconnected. One Health requires applying a coordinated, collaborative, multidisciplinary and cross-sectoral approach to addressing potential or existing risks that originate at the animal-human-ecosystems’ interface. It is well acknowledged that many critical societal concerns can be tackled efficiently only through the One Health approach. Resistance to antimicrobials, emergence of new diseases in humans or animals, zoonoses, pollution of the environment and many others, impact both humans and animals in a similar way. The current life-style, including international trade and rapid movements of people, animals, food and goods, may impose additional challenges. What used to be local now is global. Globalization, together with environmental and climate change, impacts on the emergence of new of health threats. In order to be prepared to deal with all those challenges in the future we should start today thinking out of the box. It is inevitable that we need to encourage cross sectoral collaboration between medical doctors, veterinarians and other professionals, starting from the university. The Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVE) represents the veterinary profession in Europe. FVE has recognized the value of implementing the holistic approach of One Health and has been involved in several initiatives in the last years. FVE advocates the value of the One Health concept at high political organs, such as the European Commission and the European Agencies, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union; FVE works together with the organizations of the United Nations: The World organization for animal health (OIE), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to promote the concept of One Health. FVE works on the establishment of One-Health coalitions with various stakeholders, such as the standing committee of European doctors (CPME), and participates in One Health research consortia. One Health holistic approach can allow for a better understanding of the mechanisms impacting human and animal health, while all health professions have a responsibility to work together and contribute to a sustainable and healthy world.

Biography

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Despoina Iatridou graduated in 2000 from Veterinary School of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece. After her graduation, she started her own veterinary practice in Greece, where she worked for more than seven years as a Veterinary Practitioner, before leaving for Brussels. Since February 2010, she has been working in the FVE Office as a Veterinary Policy Officer. Her duties involve monitoring of legislation of the European Union and initiatives related mainly to veterinary education, veterinary medicines, antimicrobial resistance, One Health, and animals used for scientific purposes. In 2014, she was additionally appointed as General Secretary of VETCEE (Veterinary Continuous Education in Europe), an independent organisation that runs an accreditation scheme for postgraduate modular programmes for veterinary practitioners.

Email: despoina@fve.org