Performing Department
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Non Technical Summary
Antimicrobials are used in production animals together with good husbandry, biosecurity, and disease prevention to protect animal and human health and maintain financial security in animal agriculture. The sustainability of animal agriculture is threatened, however, by the dissemination of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) organisms, compounded by restricted use of antimicrobial drugs in food animals. Agricultural science students, the future producers, farm workers and agricultural industry leaders can play a critical role in preventing the negative impacts of AMR through effective farm biosecurity, disease prevention, and antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). In cooperation with educators from the OSU College of Food, Agriculture, and Environmental Science, we plan to adapt the OSU College of Veterinary Medicine's antimicrobial stewardship program to address the educational needs of agricultural science students by developing learning modules targeting AMS in the production animal industry. With the guidance of specialists in agricultural communication and Extension education, we also address the need for future agricultural scientists to share this knowledge with their colleagues working in the production animal industry, expanding employment opportunities for these graduates. We hypothesize that training animal science students to practice farm biosecurity, disease prevention and the judicious use of antimicrobials will prepare them for their role as antimicrobial stewards in the production animal industry. Development of oral and written communication skills will promote sharing of scientific knowledge with audiences of different backgrounds and levels of literacy and scientific training enabling future farm managers and industry leaders to communicate the principles of AMS with others working with production animals.
Animal Health Component
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Research Effort Categories
Basic
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Applied
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Developmental
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Goals / Objectives
Obj 1. Train the producers, farm managers, farm workers, production Extension specialists and animal science industry leaders of tomorrow in the application of disease prevention, farm biosecurity and antimicrobial stewardship principles in animal agriculture while reinforcing the basic concepts of antimicrobial use and resistance through the provision of a structured series of in-person and online training modules.Aim 1: Accomplish objective 1 by creating and delivering a structured series of training modules to address the threat of antimicrobial resistance and the potential impacts on animal production as part of a course targeting undergraduate students in agriculture majors.Obj 2. Equip future agricultural science graduates with the necessary tools and skill sets to become effective animal agriculture workforce trainers using a structured series of learning modules focused on effective communication of scientific knowledge, emphasizing mentored creation of educational materials for producers that focus on antimicrobial resistance and stewardship, disease prevention/control practices and on-farm biosecurity practices in agricultural animal populations.Aim 2: Accomplish objective 2 by creating and delivering a structured series of training modules to prepare future agricultural industry leaders and Extension specialists on the effective communication of scientific knowledge as part of a course targeting undergraduate students in agriculture majors.
Project Methods
Approach to Achieve Objective 1: Train the producers, farm managers, farm workers, production Extension specialists and animal science industry leaders of tomorrow in the application of disease prevention, farm biosecurity and antimicrobial stewardship principles in animal agriculture while reinforcing the basic concepts of antimicrobial use and resistance through the provision of a structured series of in-person and online training modules.Antimicrobial stewardship education programs targeting agricultural students, the future producers, farm managers and animal industry leaders on the front line of animal health and welfare, are necessary to preserve the effectiveness of antimicrobials for the future. Online modules will include the foundational concepts of microbiology, antimicrobial action, evolution of antimicrobial resistance, disease prevention and farm biosecurity. Students will be required to apply their knowledge to promote animal health and welfare while protecting the livelihood of our nation's animal agriculture producers by developing farm biosecurity and disease prevention plans. Online delivery of educational modules, that focus on biosecurity, disease prevention and antimicrobial stewardship in animal agriculture, will enable learning flexibility and expansion of the Antimicrobial Stewardship accreditation program beyond the Ohio State University. The OSU CVM currently has one clinical microbiologist and a clinical microbiology trainee. The clinical microbiology trainee, a veterinarian trained in veterinary public health and PhD candidate, will collaborate with animal science and agricultural communication instructors and CVM clinical epidemiologists, the clinical pharmacist, and the OSU-CVM instructional designer, to develop the online learning modules. This course, designed for agricultural students, will be a three-credit hour, 15-week, (one semester) course, delivered in three modules as outlined below. Our knowledge and understanding of infectious disease, the microbial agents that cause disease and antimicrobial resistance is rapidly evolving and as such, course materials will be updated prior to the start of each semester.Approach to Achieve Objective 2: Equip future agricultural science graduates with the necessary tools and skill sets to become effective animal agriculture workforce trainers using a structured series of learning modules focused on effective communication of scientific knowledge, emphasizing mentored creation of educational materials for producers that focus on antimicrobial resistance and stewardship, disease prevention/control practices and on-farm biosecurity practices in agricultural animal populations.Agricultural science graduates bring new ideas and knowledge to all levels of the animal production industry from family farms to large corporations. New ideas and knowledge equip students with the tools necessary to effectively share and apply information to counteract entrenched behaviors that are harmful to the longevity of the industry. The current undergraduate agricultural science curriculum in the CFAES at The Ohio State University includes training in agricultural communication, focusing on both verbal and written communication. Communication and Extension experts from the OSU-CVM and CFAES will help students further develop communication skills focusing on specific activities to prevent disease, maintain farm biosecurity and provide Extension programs for farmers and farm workers on antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial stewardship. The creation of written and verbal educational materials by agricultural science graduates for their animal production industry colleagues will help support and reinforce the advice of veterinarians on farm biosecurity management, disease prevention practices and the use of antimicrobial drugs in the production animal setting. Students will develop skills in creating accessible, written, plain language, health communication resources [27] with mentored creation of handouts, fact sheets and posters addressing farm biosecurity, disease prevention and antimicrobial stewardship. Students will also practice their verbal communication skills by developing short (5 minute) visual presentations addressing these topics. These assessments will be graded by members of the OSU-CVM antimicrobial stewardship team and the agricultural communication and Extension teams, who will provide feedback on the accuracy of the subject matter and the appeal and presentation of the Extension materials.