TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2023//
TI  - World Organization for Animal Health members' capacity to deal with animal welfare emergencies during natural disasters in Europe
JO  - Disaster medicine and public health preparedness
A1  - Vroegindewey, Gary
A1  - Gruszynski, Karen
A1  - Handler, Daniel
A1  - Grudnik, Tomasz
A1  - Balbo, Roberto
A1  - Dalla Villa, Paolo
SP  - ePub
EP  - ePub
VL  - ePub
IS  - ePub
N2  - OBJECTIVE: Little is known about individual European countries or regional capacity to respond to animal welfare emergencies during natural disasters; therefore, it is important to establish baseline information (e.g. types of disasters, training) to enable more focused and data driven actionable support for future disasters. <br><br>METHODS: A 55-question survey was distributed by email link to the 53 World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) European Region Members plus one observer country. <br><br>RESULTS: Forty-nine countries (91%, n=54) responded to the survey. Fifty-one percent (25/49) indicated they incorporated animal welfare into their national disaster regulatory framework while 59% (29/49) indicated animal welfare was incorporated in the Veterinary Service National Disaster Management and Risk Reduction Plan. Thirty-nine percent (19/49) indicated they had 'no' or 'limited' legal authority to manage animal emergencies in natural disasters. Floods, forest fires, and snowstorm/extreme cold were the three most commonly reported disasters over the last 10 years with 79% (27/34) reporting Veterinary Services were involved in managing these disasters. <br><br>CONCLUSION: The survey results indicated a wide range in the capacity of WOAH European Member Countries to respond to animal welfare in natural disasters highlighting the gaps and potential areas of improvement in this arena.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1935-7893
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/dmp.2023.167
ID  - ref1
ER  -