AUBURN — One Health is a concept that recognizes the interconnectedness of human, animal and environmental health; it is built on the premise that the health of all living things and our planet may be improved when experts across different fields work together to solve complex health problems.
One Health involves collaboration at local, regional, national and global levels — with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes for all. Public health focuses on preventing illness and injury and promoting health in populations such as neighborhoods, communities, regions or countries. Issues relevant to public and One Health include — but are not limited to — zoonotic and vector-borne disease, hunger, diet-disease linkages, biosecurity, occupational health and safety, pandemic preparedness, antimicrobial resistance and global health issues affected by climate.
Collaboration is key to success
Collaboration is essential for understanding and addressing complex health issues comprehensively. Auburn has a long-standing history of bringing educators, researchers, students and community members together in impactful ways to tackle health challenges. The College of Veterinary Medicine leads the One Health initiative with the involvement of seven additional colleges: Nursing, Liberal Arts, Sciences and Mathematics, Human Sciences, Education, Agriculture and Forestry, Wildlife and Environment.
Transdisciplinary public health interventions have potential to produce more successful, sustainable health outcomes. Advancement of One Health requires that professionals in human health (physicians, nurses, public health specialists, epidemiologists), animal health (veterinarians, paraprofessionals, agricultural workers) and environmental science (ecologists, wildlife biologists), as well as biomedical scientists working in a host of related disciplines communicate, collaborate and coordinate their activities. Other relevant players in a One Health approach could include law enforcement, policymakers, agriculturalists, urban and rural communities and pet owners.
Auburn employs a One Health approach by involving experts in human, animal and environmental health to understand and mitigate public health threats and to learn how diseases spread across species at the human-animal interface. By fostering interdisciplinary research and innovative educational strategies, Auburn is preparing the next generation of public health professionals for whatever challenges they may face.
Training the next generation of public health professionals
This fall, the College of Veterinary Medicine will welcome its inaugural class in the Public and One Health (PAOH) undergraduate degree program. It is a unique public health program in that it promotes One Health as its guiding principle. This holistic approach prepares graduates of the program to proactively devise and implement solutions to tackle local, regional and even global health issues.
Eight different colleges at Auburn contribute important courses that cover various topics including health communication, data skills, social and behavioral health, disease ecology, environmental health, nutritional impact, zoonotic diseases and more.
“We are hoping this program is an important way Auburn can meet a critical societal need, addressing complex health challenges in today’s interconnected world,” said Andrea Perkins, co-director of the PAOH program.
Perkins also promotes the concept’s emphasis on taking meaningful action to improve local and global health.
“One Health is very focused on action: how we need to develop, implement, assess and modify. Ideally, we aim to promote more meaningful and actionable steps toward the long-term improvement of health,” she added.
Students interested in health and health science are well-suited to this major. Graduates of this program will not only have the option to begin working in entry-level careers in public health, but they may also complete course requirements necessary to apply for medical, veterinary or other professional programs or graduate studies in public health or biomedical sciences.
Auburn also offers a graduate student opportunity in One Health with the College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment’s One Health graduate certificate. This program is cooperatively taught with the College of Veterinary Medicine and the School of Public Health at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
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