Why is rabies a notifiable disease in australia

Anyone handling bats or other potentially infected animals or materials must have a current rabies vaccination and use protective gear. Classical rabies virus is closely related to ABLV and the rabies vaccine is believed to provide cross-protection. Veterinarians, nurses and wildlife carers who regularly handle bats or flying foxes are at risk of becoming infected with ABLV and should consider pre-exposure vaccination with the rabies vaccine.

Regular rabies titre checks, blood tests are recommended to determine if a booster rabies vaccine is required. Seek medical advice for current human health recommendations. The general public and non-rabies vaccinated individuals should be discouraged from rescuing or handling bats.

Trained wildlife carers or Department Environment, Land, Water and Planning DELWP wildlife officers can be contacted to provide a safe and effective means of assisting dead or injured bats. Do not allow bats of any age, regardless if they appear healthy or sick, to be handled or touched by children or other people who do not have a current rabies vaccination.

Anyone who has been bitten or scratched by a bat must immediately contact their local medical practitioner or the Department Health and Human Services Communicable Disease Unit on Immediately wash the affected area with soap and water and apply an antiseptic such as iodine-based solutions or alcohol ethanol. If you find your pet or horse in contact with a bat or suspect this has happened or if your animal is showing signs suggestive of ABLV infection, immediately report the incident to the Emergency Animal Disease Watch Hotline on , your local Agriculture Victoria Animal Health and Welfare staff or to your private veterinarian.

The virus can be transmitted from bats to humans, livestock, horses or pets when infected bat saliva enters the body, usually through a bite or scratch. Other risks include bat saliva exposed to the eyes, nose or mouth through aerosol droplets, or into a pre-existing break in the skin such as a cut or wound.

ABLV is unlikely to survive outside the bat or in a dead bat for more than a few hours, especially in dry environments that are exposed to sunlight. Surveillance data will also provide public health professionals with critical information to make informed decisions about saving human lives. For instance, in a number of countries, notification is used by health authorities to investigate possible exposures and organize post-exposure prophylaxis, quarantine and other disease containment measures.

Rabies reporting and notification are also of value for the rapid identification of foci and the implementation of control measures if needed. Surveillance measures should also include reporting of human exposures by suspect rabid animals and post-exposure doses administered. Click here for more information on rabies surveillance strategies. What is the difference between reporting and notification?

Variability in disease burden and management of rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease in two regions of tropical Australia — Internal Medicine Journal, Surveillance reports Notifiable conditions reports Foodborne disease Healthcare associated infections Influenza surveillance reporting Mosquito borne diseases surveillance Sexually transmissible infections Tuberculosis and other mycobacterial diseases Vaccine preventable disease surveillance Zoonotic and other diseases.

Employment Job search Work for us Rural and remote Overseas applications Clinical placements and work experience Training and professional development Employment conditions. Transmission : People are usually infected following a bite or scratch from an animal infected with the virus. Incubation period : Usually 3 to 8 weeks, rarely as short as a few days or as long as several years, depending on features of the wound. The incubation period for ABLV and other lyssavirus infections is less certain but is assumed to be similar to rabies virus.

Infectious period : The infectious period for rabies virus infection has been described reliably only in dogs, cats and ferrets, in which communicability usually commences 3 to 7 days before onset of clinical signs and persists throughout the course of the illness.

The period of communicability of ABLV and other lyssaviruses is not known. Case exclusion : Case should be isolated for duration of the illness.