Multidisciplinary Collaboration Mitigating Health Crises Rooted in Wildlife-Human Interaction

Abstract

In 1964, the term One Health was coined to emphasize the significance of integrating human and animal health in a unified framework. However, since then, there has been limited attention on implementing the One Health principles in real-world scenarios, assessing its effectiveness, and making necessary enhancements. Despite significant advances in science and technology, we remain vulnerable to infectious disease outbreaks, as evidenced by the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Many human diseases, including COVID-19, SARS, MERS, Ebola, and zoonotic influenza, among others, are actually zoonoses that originated or grew in the wild [1], and yet there is no (or very little) systematic or quantitative studies from management engineering perspective to address the issues of disease transmission from wildlife to humans. The COVID-19 pandemic, for example, has killed millions of people around the world. Global economic repercussions persist. When it comes to the effects of wildlife diseases on human health, the question is how to lessen the likelihood of future pandemics.A path to improve public health has been mapped out by a number of scientific studies from a variety of fields. However, because each study has its own scope and perspective, implementing all of these methods on a global scale may result in a conflict of interest between different parts of society. To solve these intricate problems, we need to draw on the expertise of many fields and develop a unified system for global ecosystem monitoring and management. To identify zoonoses and stop them from spreading into widespread epidemics, we need a unified platform that integrates data and knowledge from many disciplines, including but not limited to medicine, biology, epidemiology, and the decision sciences. Academicians have already generated thousands of articles resulting from their comprehensive research, particularly in medicinal fields [2, 3]. However, limited attention has been given to bridging the gap between these academic pursuits and the managerial domain. Establishing a foundation for unified collaboration among various scientific disciplines is crucial, ensuring effective cooperation without the risk of interference in each other's work. The authors initiated direct contact through email with a university professor from Scotland who is overseeing a constrained experiment on bat vaccination. The professor highlighted that a primary concern in Latin America hindering community adherence to bat vaccination is the concern about potential overpopulation of the species resulting from immunization. This underscores the fact that scientists conducting research in veterinary, medical or pharmaceutical fields should closely collaborate with management engineers or professionals from related fields. Such collaboration will assist authorities in determining, for instance, whether vaccinations help in controlling zoonotic diseases or overpopulated species like bats, which could potentially increase the likelihood of emerging novel zoonotic diseases. Such collaboratio...