Source attribution of salmonellosis by time and geography in New South Wales, Australia

Abstract Background Salmonella is a major cause of zoonotic illness around the world, arising from direct or indirect contact with a range of animal reservoirs. In the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW), salmonellosis is believed to be primarily foodborne, but the relative contribution of animal reservoirs is unknown. Methods The analysis included 4543 serotyped isolates from animal reservoirs and 30,073 serotyped isolates from domestically acquired human cases in NSW between January 2008 and August 2019. We used a Bayesian source attribution methodology to estimate the proportion of foodborne Salmonella infections attributable to broiler chickens, layer chickens, ruminants, pigs, and an unknown or unsampled source. Additional analyses included covariates for four time periods and five levels of rurality. Results A single serotype, S. Typhimurium, accounted for 65–75% of included cases during 2008–2014 but < 50% during 2017–2019. Attribution to layer chickens was highest during 2008–2010 (48.7%, 95% CrI 24.2–70.3%) but halved by 2017–2019 (23.1%, 95% CrI 5.7–38.9%) and was lower in the rural and remote populations than in the majority urban population. The proportion of cases attributed to the unsampled source was 11.3% (95% CrI 1.2%–22.1%) overall, but higher in rural and remote populations. The proportion of cases attributed to pork increased from approximately 20% in 2009–2016 to approximately 40% in 2017–2019, coinciding with a rise in cases due to Salmonella ser. 4,5,12:i:-. Conclusion Layer chickens were likely the primary reservoir of domestically acquired Salmonella infections in NSW circa 2010, but attribution to the source declined contemporaneously with increased vaccination of layer flocks and tighter food safety regulations for the handling of eggs.

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Source Attribution of Salmonellosis by Time and Geography in New South Wales, Australia

10.21203/rs.3.rs-666044/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Angus McLure ◽

Craig Shadbolt ◽

Patricia M. Desmarchelier ◽

Martyn D. Kirk ◽

Kathryn Glass

Keyword(s):

Broiler Chickens ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Source Attribution ◽

Rural And Remote ◽

Indirect Contact ◽

Relative Contribution ◽

South Wales ◽

Layer Chickens ◽

Animal Reservoirs

Abstract BackgroundSalmonella is major cause of zoonotic illness around the world, arising from direct or indirect contact with a range of animal reservoirs. In the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW), salmonellosis is believed to be primarily foodborne, but the relative contribution of animal reservoirs is unknown.MethodsThe analysis included 4,543 serotyped isolates from animal reservoirs and 30,073 serotyped isolates from domestically acquired human cases in NSW between January 2008 and August 2019. We used a Bayesian source attribution methodology to estimate the proportion of foodborne Salmonella infections attributable to broiler chickens, layer chickens, ruminants, pigs, and an unknown or unsampled source. Additional analyses included covariates for four time periods and five levels of rurality.ResultsA single serotype, S. Typhimurium, accounted for 65-75% of included cases during 2008-2014 but <50% during 2017-2019. Attribution to layer chickens was highest during 2008-2010 (48.7%, 95%CrI: 24.2-70.3%) but halved by 2017-2019 (23.1%, 95%CrI: 5.7-38.9%) and was lower in the rural and remote populations than in the majority urban population. The proportion of cases attributed to the unsampled source was 11.3% (95%CrI: 1.2%–22.1%) overall, but higher in rural and remote populations. The proportion of cases attributed to pork increased from approximately 20% in 2009-2016 to approximately 40% in 2017-2019 coinciding with a rise in cases due to S. ser 4,5,12:i:-.Conclusion Layer chickens were likely the primary reservoir of domestically acquired Salmonella infections in NSW circa 2010, but attribution to the source declined contemporaneously with increased vaccination of layer flocks and tighter food safety regulations for the handling of eggs.

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An assessment of strategies to control dental caries in Aboriginal children living in rural and remote communities in New South Wales, Australia

http://isrctn.com/ ◽

10.1186/isrctn16110292 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Yvonne Dimitropoulos

Keyword(s):

Dental Caries ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Rural And Remote ◽

Remote Communities ◽

South Wales ◽

Aboriginal Children

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Case Study

Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing Informatics - Advances in Medical Technologies and Clinical Practice ◽

10.4018/978-1-60960-034-1.ch015 ◽

2011 ◽

pp. 191-203

Author(s):

E. Saurman ◽

D. Perkins ◽

D. Lyle ◽

M. Patfield ◽

R. Roberts

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Health Service ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Health Staff ◽

Local Health ◽

Rural And Remote ◽

South Wales ◽

Western Area ◽

Area Health

The MHEC-RAP project involves the innovative application of video conferencing to mental health assessment in rural NSW. The preliminary evaluation findings of the project are presented. Mental health emergencies in rural and remote settings cause particular problems and are not amenable to conventional health service solutions. Patients and local health care staff may be isolated from specialist mental health staff and from acute inpatient services. Decisions to transport patients for specialist assessments or treatment may be required at night or at weekends and may involve families, police, ambulance services and local health staff. Such decisions need to be made promptly but carefully and the ability to obtain a specialist assessment may assist in making a decision about how best to care for the patient bearing in mind the need to provide a responsive, high quality and safe service to patients and local clinicians. In this chapter we examine a novel approach which uses audio-visual technology to conduct remote emergency mental health patient assessment interviews and provide consultations to local clinicians in rural communities in western NSW. The Mental Health Emergency Care – Rural Access Project or ‘MHEC-RAP’ was developed in 2007 following a series of consultations held in rural towns and implemented in 2008 within the Greater Western Area Health Service (GWAHS), New South Wales, Australia. GWAHS is a primary example of a rural and remote health service. It serves 287,481 people (8.3% of whom are Indigenous Australians) in an area that is 445,197sq km or 55% of the state of New South Wales (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2001; Greater Western Area Health Service, 2007, 2009). The communities within GWAHS are mostly small, the towns are widely dispersed and local services are “limited by distance, expense, transport, and the difficulty of recruiting health professionals to these areas” (Dunbar, 2007 page 587). The chapter focuses on the design of the service, its implementation and its performance in the first year. We conclude with a discussion about the service, its broader relevance, transferability and its sustainability.

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