Inter-institutional collaboration for training and research in One Health: the experiences of CCM and CISAO_University of Turin

In order to improve the effectiveness of the One Health approach, there is a need to establish a better sectorial balance between existing groups and networks, in particular between veterinarians and medical doctors, animal and human health workers. Moreover, it is essential ensuring the participation of local communities and experts of the environmental and wildlife protection sectors, as well as sociologists, institutional decision-makers and experts in sustainable development. For this reason, CCM begun to address these interrelations in 2005, particularly dealing with the health of nomadic pastoralists from Ethiopia through the project “One Medicine”. These populations migrate, following their livestock, searching for grazing land. Their well-being and livelihood are closely linked to their livestock, which is their only source of wealth. By moving around, they improve the environment and mitigate desertification. The existing system of health delivery service is static and health officers face several difficulties in reaching these nomadic communities and providing them proper care. The multidisciplinary One Health approach allows us to offer a service that deals with both human and animal health, through people duly trained for each village: the Community Health Workers and the Community Animal Health Workers. The health system we have in mind must be safe, accessible, sustainable and compatible with the evolution of the ecosystem. The experience gained on the field urged us to share our results with a larger audience, with the final goal of promoting the One Health approach in a wider context.