The veterinary workforce: how collaboration protects animal health and welfare in India

The veterinary workforce plays a large role in safeguarding animal health and protecting animal and environmental well-being. Their role in reducing animal diseases has ripple effects that protect livelihoods, local economies, and humans from zoonotic diseases.

However, rural areas tend to see a shortage of veterinarians, leaving animal and human populations unprotected. A lack of veterinary care could mean zoonotic diseases such as rabies or brucellosis could spread unchecked and non-zoonotic diseases like Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) and foot and mouth disease (FMD) could run rampant, putting food security in jeopardy. To combat this, Veterinary Paraprofessionals (VPPs) and Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs) provide a wide range of services which support veterinarians and fill the gaps in rural animal care.  

Universal training for a strong veterinary workforce 

Together, veterinarians, VPPs and CAHWs work to ensure that the right people, with the right skills are available to provide animal healthcare services to those who need. A prime example of this is the model found in India. Here, university trained veterinarians work together with formally trained VPPs, and non-governmental organisation (NGO) trained CAHWs (otherwise known as Pashu Sakhis) who provide services primarily in remote, rural areas.  

As NGOs may have their own modules and mode of operations for training CAHWs, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) supports Members by ensuring access to the tools necessary to promote a well-trained veterinary workforce such as competency and curriculum guidelines for veterinarians, VPPs and CAHWs.

Dr Abdus Sabur Sheikh, Senior Programme Manager, Livestock Technology and One Health for Passing Gifts Private Limited, subsidiary of Heifer International – an enterprise that trains Pashu Sakhis in India – was a field consultant on the guidelines for CAHWs. According to him, uniform training modules that enhance the skills and education of VPPs and CAHWs will build a more resilient veterinary workforce that offers animal healthcare services to even the most remote areas. 

Working together to improve animal health 

Each member of the veterinary workforce – which includes veterinarians, VPPs and CAHWs – offers a unique expertise that is essential for providing reliable animal health services. Ensuring the training, development and effective coordination of these service providers enhances animal healthcare, especially in underserved communities. This approach has proven successful in India, where veterinary service provision in rural areas is the domain of the VPP and the CAHW. 

Dr. Suman Prasad, a government veterinarian who spoke to us about his experience as part of this model in Bihar, a state in Eastern India, is found most often treating sick animals either at the Veterinary Hospital or in the field or vaccinating large animals against diseases like foot and mouth disease (FMD), lumpy skin disease (LSD), haemorrhagic septicaemia (HS) and brucellosis. Alongside this, he works closely with CAHWs who help him vaccinate and deworm animals. 

Mr. Amarjeet Kumar, a VPP working in collaboration with Dr. Prasad, provides small animal husbandry training and backyard poultry training to CAHWs and creates links between them and veterinary hospitals as well as providing animal healthcare in farms and villages. For him, his days consist of field visits to monitor goat shed construction, providing biosecurity training to farmers, supporting CAHWs in the field and treating sick animals.  

Ms. Mira Devi the CAHW of the triad, who works closely with Mr. Kumar, spends most of her days focusing on treating, vaccinating and deworming goats – her principal animal patients – in villages. Her work has helped countless farmers access veterinary care, reduced goat mortality and, being a member of the community, she’s gained the trust of the farmers she visits. Working in tandem with a VPP and a government veterinarian, Ms. Devi supports village counsels (known locally as gram panchayat) and provides last mile animal healthcare.  

“Having the support of a VPP and CAHW is vital to the vaccination process.” says Dr. Prasad of the triad model. In recent years the number of vaccinators, who are independent, has decreased. Some of the vaccinators, who oversee vaccinating large animals against brucellosis, FMD, HS and LSD in their respective gram panchayats, tend to dropout or change their scope of work quite frequently, leaving government veterinarians in the lurch. So, having the help of trained CAHWs – who normally vaccinate smaller animals, like goats – during vaccination drives makes a world of difference. There is also the added advantage of CAHWs being local women who are easily able to interact with Bihar’s majority-female goat farmers and provide preventive veterinary care which reduce mortality and increase productivity and income for rural farmers.  

Continued support for WOAH Members 

This model, however, is not without its challenges. “Sometimes, vaccines come too late to be effective,” says Ms. Devi reflecting on her experience as a CAHW. This sentiment is echoed by Mr. Kumar from his standpoint as a VPP, who adds, “Obtaining medications at the local level is difficult as well as getting the right training on disease diagnosis, disease outbreaks, postmortem data collection and how to properly send samples to laboratories for testing.” Though there is room for improvement, India’s collaborative approach to animal health has proven effective, showcasing the significant impact of a well-coordinated veterinary workforce.

Veterinarians, VPPs and CAHWs are at the forefront of animal disease surveillance, prevention and control. WOAH is committed to continuously provide the support and capacity its Members need to equip their Veterinary Services to respond to the threats of animal diseases and outbreaks. By keeping animals safe, Members protect and empower their communities and keep their economies growing.  A well-trained, well-equipped veterinary workforce is essential to ensure the health and well-being of animals and the people who depend on them. 

Read more about how we support our Members in creating a stronger veterinary workforce: PVS Pathway – WOAH – World Organisation for Animal Health