Abstract
Haiti has historically vaccinated between 100,000 and 300,000 dogs annually against rabies, however national authorities have not been able to reach and maintain the 70% coverage required to eliminate the canine rabies virus variant. Haiti conducts massive dog vaccination campaigns on an annual basis and utilizes both central point and door-to-door methods. These methods require that dog owners are aware of the dates and locations of the campaign. To improve this awareness among dog owners, 600,000 text messages were sent to phones in two Haitian communes (Gonaives and Saint-Marc) to remind dog owners to attend the campaign. Text messages were delivered on the second day and at the mid-point of the campaign. A post-campaign household survey was conducted to assess dog owner’s perception of the text messages and the impact on their participation in the vaccination campaign. Overall, 147 of 160 (91.9%) text-receiving dog owners indicated the text was helpful, and 162 of 187 (86.6%) responding dog owners said they would like to receive text reminders during future rabies vaccination campaigns. In areas hosting one-day central point campaigns, dog owners who received the text were 2.0 (95% CI 1.1, 3.6) times more likely to have participated in the campaign (73.1% attendance among those who received the text vs 36.4% among those who did not). In areas incorporating door-to-door vaccination over multiple days there was no significant difference in participation between dog owners who did and did not receive a text. Text message reminders were well-received and significantly improved campaign attendance, indicating that short message service (SMS) alerts may be a successful strategy in low resource areas with large free roaming dog populations.
Highlights
Rabies is a neglected disease that causes human deaths in more than 150 countries worldwide and is primarily spread through the bite of a rabid dog [1]
The evaluation of the impact of text message reminders on vaccination campaign participation was nested within a larger evaluation of vaccination methodology conducted in Haiti during their 2017 mass dog vaccination campaign
The cities were divided along major roadways to help vaccinators find the correct area; there were no significant differences in geological features, population density, or rabies vaccination history
Summary
Rabies is a neglected disease that causes human deaths in more than 150 countries worldwide and is primarily spread through the bite of a rabid dog [1]. Local success stories have been reported from programs in Guatemala, Haiti, India and Malawi, with assistance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Mission Rabies, and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) [4,5,6,7]. These successes have involved significant staff training and technology incorporation; logistical constraints that cannot be replicated in all 122 canine-rabies endemic countries. In order to overcome this deficiency in public awareness, an option raised in discussion with the stakeholders and Merck Animal Health (known as MSD Animal Health outside of the United States and Canada) was to explore the use of mobile technology
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