Abstract
Given the proximity and recent spread of rabies in Indonesia, effective rabies surveillance in dogs is a priority in Northern Australia and Papua New Guinea (PNG). Reporting of potential cases requires community engagement; therefore, the value and acceptability of such a system is critical to ensure sustainable surveillance. We used qualitative research methods to identify factors that influence the acceptability and value of community-based rabies surveillance. Thirty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted with informants in 16 communities in East Arnhem, the Northern Peninsula Area, the Torres Strait in Australia, and in Western Province, PNG. Thematic analysis identified common themes including the importance of verbal communication, particularly via radio, community meetings, and direct conversation. We also found that dogs have high value to community members through connection to culture, economic (especially hunting), and companionship. The greatest barrier to the reporting of sick dogs was insufficient veterinary services and the subsequent lack of treatment response. In some regions, acceptance that sick dogs are a normal daily occurrence and lack of trust of authorities were also barriers to reporting. The findings from this study will be used to design sustainable rabies surveillance in Northern Australia and PNG by utilizing traditional communication channels and building on existing and valued animal-management services. The methods and findings of this study complement previous quantitative research, so as to target surveillance to high-risk areas within these regions.
Highlights
After almost a century of endemic rabies infection in the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and Sulawesi), canine-rabies has spread to historically free islands in the east during the previous two decades [1, 2]
In East Arnhem, informants were most likely to communicate concerns to elders and in other regions in this study, informants stated that they would speak to authorities, including biosecurity officers and animal management workers (AMWs) or environmental health workers (EHWs)
Health worker: “So many times, people ask me to help with their dog
Summary
After almost a century of endemic rabies infection in the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and Sulawesi), canine-rabies has spread to historically free islands in the east during the previous two decades [1, 2]. The Oceanic region is free of canine-rabies, but the most recently infected Indonesia islands—the southern Maluku Islands—are approximately 1,000 km from Papua New Guinea (PNG), the Torres Strait, and Queensland, Australia, and only 300 km from the coastline of the Northern Territory, Australia. While the drivers of the recent spread of rabies in Indonesia are unknown, infection of new islands has been attributed to movement of rabies-infected dogs associated with human activities such as fishing and visiting relatives [3]. Dogs are abundant in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Indigenous) communities in both Australia and PNG. Owned, they are usually allowed to roam freely [6]. Timely detection of a rabies incursion in PNG or Northern Australia is important to increase the probability of elimination and prevent human deaths
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