Open AccessWisconsin dairy farm worker perceptions and practices related to antibiotic use, resistance, and infection prevention using a systems engineering framework
Author(s) -
Ashley Kates,
Mary Jo Knobloch,
Ali Konkel,
Amanda Young,
Andrew J. Steinberger,
John Shutske,
P.L. Ruegg,
Ajay K. Sethi,
Tony L. Goldberg,
J. Campos,
Garret Suen,
Nasia Safdar
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0258290
Subject(s) - environmental health , hygiene , focus group , personal protective equipment , antibiotic stewardship , psychological intervention , transmission (telecommunications) , resistance (ecology) , infection control , stewardship (theology) , antibiotic resistance , medicine , business , antibiotics , nursing , marketing , intensive care medicine , biology , engineering , ecology , law , pathology , covid-19 , political science , disease , microbiology and biotechnology , politics , infectious disease (medical specialty) , electrical engineering
We studied farmworker practices and beliefs potentially contributing to transmission of bacteria and their associated antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) among animals and farm workers to identify potential behavioral interventions to reduce the risk of bacterial transmission. Ten focus groups were conducted on eight Wisconsin dairy farms to assess potentially high-risk practices and farmworker knowledge and experiences with antibiotic use and resistance using the Systems Engineering in Patient Safety (SEIPS) framework. Farmworkers were asked to describe common on-farm tasks and the policies guiding these practices. We found workers demonstrated knowledge of the role of antibiotic stewardship in preventing the spread of ARGs. Worker knowledge of various forms of personal protective equipment was higher for workers who commonly reported glove-use. Additionally, workers knowledge regarding the importance of reducing ARG transmission varied but was higher than we had hypothesized. Programs to reduce ARG spread on dairy farms should focus on proper hand hygiene and personal protective equipment use at the level of knowledge, beliefs, and practices.