Veterinarians on the front line to collaborate in the fight against Coronavirus. "Our experience is very important especially from an epidemiological point of view, but I don't think we will be able to make a contribution to perform rapid swabs". This is the first response from Maria Chiara Bovo, regional secretary of the Veneto Public Medicine Veterinary Union (Sivemp) after the proposal from governor of Veneto Luca Zaia to use their contribution to support general practitioners in performing swabs. A proposal commented on, and not excluded, also by the president of the National Association of Italian Veterinarians Carlo Scotti according to which veterinarians are used, albeit on different fronts, to deal with pandemics. However, according to Scotti, a proposal that would need necessary checks and, above all, adequate coverage by the Ministry of Health.
Zaia appeals to veterinarians to help general practitioners
Zaia, appealed to 2450 freelance veterinarians and 330 employees of the Venetian Ulss. "We have decided to convene the representatives of the Venetian veterinarians - he announced - to ask them to do the tests, as we have already asked the general practitioners". It is not the same thing, however, explain the veterinarians, our contribution would certainly be important also on this front but it does not seem possible to us from a legal point of view.
"Since the beginning of the Covid emergency - he explains Maria Chiara Bovo of the Sivemp Veneto - we have given our willingness to participate in the definition of strategies to combat the pandemic. Our specific epidemiological skills, as well as in the treatment and isolation of infectious outbreaks, are fundamental in this phase of emergency and beyond ". Veterinarians remember being the in the past first bulwark against avian flu, swine flu, BSE commonly known as mad cow. All zoonoses, that is, infectious diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans. Just like the Coronavirus. Their surveillance action on animal diseases, prevention and protection of public health, has been carried out constantly for many years. The experience and skills are there, it is indubitable. "But - add the veterinarians - we can give availability on our skills, not on those of doctors who have a different qualification".
Zooprophylactic already engaged in processing the swabs and sequencing the virus
Furthermore, in this emergency phase, the active role ofExperimental Zooprophylactic Institute of the Venezie (IZSVe) has resulted in the processing of swabs, up to 700 per day. And in the whole genome sequencing of the SARS-CoV-2 virus responsible for COVID-19 cases in Veneto. Without forgetting the contact tracing for the tracking of cases also carried out with the support of veterinarians. During last spring's lockdown, their daily commitment on the agri-food chain and on the healthiness of food, from farm to table, was never lacking. An active role, therefore, albeit on different fronts.
The president of the Region Veneto Luca Zaia has announced a joint meeting which has not yet been fixed at the moment. "We are there - say the veterinarians - even if our role is often not at the forefront in terms of visibility, it is still fundamental, without prejudice to our specific skills".
