Peter Hewitt

1
Australias Animal Health Surveillance and
Monitoring Programs

• Peter Hewitt
• Counsellor (Agriculture Technical)
• Australian Embassy - Beijing
• February 2008

2
National Animal Health Information System

• Purpose
• Collect and disseminate data from animal disease
  surveillance and monitoring programs
• Provide timely and accurate summary information
• To support trade and market access.
• Meet Australia's international reporting
  obligations.
• Objectives
• Collect data on animal health status from the
  Government, states and territories and
  non-government agencies.
• Collate, manage, analyse and report on data
  collected.

3
Sources of DataThe following diagram illustrates
the sources of data targeted by the NAHIS
4
Animal disease surveillance programs

• National programs managed under the Animal
  Disease Surveillance Program of Animal Health
  Australia
• National Arbovirus Monitoring Program
• Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies
  Freedom Assurance Program
• Tuberculosis Freedom Assurance Program.
• Other national livestock disease surveillance
  programs
• Pig Health Monitoring Scheme
• National Sentinel Hive Program
• National Livestock Identification System.
• National wildlife disease surveillance
• Australian Wildlife Health Network.
• Disease surveillance in northern Australia
• Northern Australia Quarantine Strategy
• Northwatch.
• Initiatives for surveillance for zoonotic
  diseases in humans
• National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance
  System

5
Locations of sentinel herd and vectormonitoring
sites 200506
6
National Arbovirus Monitoring Program
7
Change in limits of bluetongue virus in Australia
200304 to 200506
8
National Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy
Surveillance Program
Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Freedom
Assurance Program aim is to increase market
confidence that Australian animals and animal
products are free from TSEs through management of
animal-related TSE activities. It provides
assurance to countries that import cattle and
sheep commodities that Australia remains free
from these diseases.

• The National TSE Surveillance Program
• Ruminant feed ban inspections
• Imported animal surveillance
• Communication and awareness
• Research and development.

Summary of results 2006
9
Tuberculosis Freedom Assurance Program

• Eradication program completed 1997
• Australia meets the OIE standard for a TB-free
  country.
• Australia will continue to undertake a passive
  surveillance, at least until 2010.
• Central surveillance activity is meat inspection
  at export abattoirs.
• Other TB surveillance activities involve

• Domestic slaughter of cattle, deer, buffalo and
  camels
• TB testing of live export animals, and
• 3. Testing of miscellaneous granulomas submitted
  after field post mortem examination for various
  reasons.

10
Pig Health Monitoring Scheme

• Abattoir inspections in 5 States
• Coverage estimated at 50 of Australias pig
  production.
• Involves post mortem examination at slaughter for
  11 production-limiting disease conditions.
• Purpose is to validate disease management
  practices
• Pigmon software
• Sponsorship by Pfizer.

11
National Sentinel Hive Program

• Surveillance for exotic bee parasites and bees
  around seaports.
• Exotic parasites Varroa, tropilaelaps and
  tracheal mites.
• Exotic bee Asian honey bee (Apis cerana),
• - exists in many countries north of Australia.
• Port surveillance provides earlier detection and
  supplies additional data to support health
  certification for live bee exports.

Samples monitored for bee pests 2006
Samples monitored for bee pests by agent, 2006
12
National Livestock Identification System

• Animal identification and trace back underpins
  surveillance and monitoring systems
• Central database for an animals life movements
  using a national electronic animal identification
  system.
• Administered by Meat and Livestock Australia
  (MLA) on behalf of industry and government
• Covers cattle, sheep and goats. A system for
  being developed

13
Australian Wildlife Health Network

• Purpose
• Promote and facilitate collaborative
  investigation and management of wildlife health
• Support of human and animal health, biodiversity
  and trade.
• Facilitate a rapid alert system
• Key theme areas
• surveillance and investigation
• research
• communications and marketing
• emergency animal disease preparedness and
  response
• education and training.
• General surveillance for
• OIE list diseases
• bat viral diseases
• mass or unusual mortality events
• salmonella cases
• arboviral infection cases
• interesting or unusual diseases.

14
Northern Australia Quarantine Strategy

• Purpose
• Conduct pre-border, border and post-border
  activities to mitigate the risk of introduced
  targeted exotic pests and diseases through our
  northern borders
• Activities
• scientific surveys
• monitoring
• public awareness activities
• collaboration with neighbouring countries

15
Northwatch

• Provides surveillance and awareness activities
  related to exotic pests and diseases in Cape York
  Peninsula, the Torres Strait and the Gulf of
  Carpentaria.
• It complements other programs such as NAQS
• Provides training to government and
  non-government personnel in a broad range of
  subjects

16
Bovine brucellosis surveillance

• Australia declared free from bovine brucellosis
  (Brucella abortus) July 1989.
• Targeted serological surveillance continued
  until the end of 1993.
• Since then, extensive general surveillance has
  demonstrated ongoing freedom from bovine
  brucellosis.

17
Surveillance for bat viruses

• Fruit bats are reservoir hosts of several
  zoonotic viruses of animal and public health
  significance in Australia and Asia.
• Includes Hendra and Nipah viruses, and Australian
  bat lyssavirus.
• Ongoing collaborative research and surveillance
  studies

18
Surveillance for zoonotic diseases
Provisional data for selected zoonotic diseases,
2006
19
National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System

• The Communicable Diseases Network Australia
  monitors the incidence of an agreed list of human
  communicable diseases through notifications to
  state and territory health authorities

National Enteric Pathogen Surveillance Scheme

• The NEPSS monitors the burden of human disease
  caused by enteric pathogens.
• Includes both human and animal pathogens, such as
  Salmonella spp., pathogenic Escherichia coli,
  Yersinia spp. and Campylobacter spp.

20
Japanese encephalitis surveillance

• Limited NAQS surveillance for transmission of
  Japanese encephalitis in the Torres Strait and
  mainland Australia.
• A sentinel naïve pig herd used in Cape York
• No evidence of mainland transmission since early
  2004.

21
Conclusion

• The principle objective of Australias NAHIS
  system is to provide accurate information,
  through monitoring and surveillance, on animal
  health in Australia.
• Although this information can be used for a
  variety of purposes, it is particularly important
  in the areas of disease reporting, trade and
  market access.
• Every country has a different animal health
  status, different priorities and unique animal
  health challenges,
• Australias animal health surveillance and
  monitoring systems are world class. However they
  are designed to address Australias unique
  characteristics and needs.
• Australia is happy to share its experiences and
  expertise to assist others to build a system
  applicable to their own situation and needs.