The social biography of antibiotic use in smallholder dairy farms in India

Abstract

BackgroundAntimicrobial resistance (AMR) has been identified as one of the major threats to global health, food security and development today. While there has been considerable attention about the use and misuse of antibiotics amongst human populations in both research and policy environments, there is no definitive estimate of the extent of misuse of antibiotics in the veterinary sector and its contribution to AMR in humans. In this study, we explored the drivers ofirrational usage of verterinary antibiotics in the dairy farming sector in peri-urban India.Methods and materialsThe study was conducted in the peri-urban belts of Ludhiana, Guwahati and Bangalore. A total of 54 interviews (formal and non-formal) were carried out across these three sites. Theme guides were developed to explore different drivers of veterinary antimicrobial use. Data was audio recorded and transcribed. Analysis of the coded data set was carried out using AtlasTi. Version 7. Themes emerged inductively from the set of codes.ResultsFindings were presented based on concept of ‘levels of analyses’. Emergent themes were categorised as individual, health systems, and policy level drivers. Low level of knowledge related to antibiotics among farmers, active informal service providers, direct marketing of drugs to the farmers and easily available antibiotics, dispensed without appropriate prescriptions contributed to easy access to antibiotics, and were identified to be the possible drivers contributing to the non-prescribed and self-administered use of antibiotics in the dairy farms.ConclusionsSmallholding dairy farmers operated within very small margins of profits. The paucity of formal veterinary services at the community level, coupled with easy availability of antibiotics and the need to ensure profits and minimise losses, promoted non-prescribed antibiotic consumption. It is essential that these local drivers of irrational antibiotic use are understood in order to develop interventions and policies that seek to reduce antibiotic misuse.

A qualitative study on antibiotic use and animal health management in smallholder dairy farms of four regions of India

“…However, the lack of trained veterinarians and inadequate delivery of animal health services appeared to be the major drive in our study. Similar results were reported in the study by Chauhan et al [3], conducted in Guwahati, Ludhiana, and Bangalore. The lack of trained veterinarians in the field and the neglect of the veterinary department was also highlighted by Sasidhar in 2002 [13].…”

“…Farmers were found to be unaware of the words 'antibiotic' and 'antimicrobial resistance.' A qualitative study similar to our study done in Guwahati, Ludhiana, and Bangalore showed the same results [3]. As per our results, most of the farmers could not differentiate between antibiotics and non-antibiotic allopathic medicines and relied upon the old prescriptions or the pharmacist of a local pharmacy to figure out the names and dosage of the medicines.…”

“…The dairy farmers in all the study regions except Bangalore rely upon 'quacks' and paravets and only consult with qualified veterinarians after the animals have failed to respond to prior treatments. Similar practices were reported by Chauhan et al [3], where due to the acute shortage of professionals, farmers tended to consult either the informal prescribers or the veterinary field assistants. This implies that, by the time a farmer reaches the veterinarian, he/she has already spent time and money trying out other alternatives.…”

Antibiotics utilization and farmers’ knowledge of its effects on soil ecosystem in the coastal drylands of Ghana

“…It is evident that increased access to extension services has direct relationship with antibiotics administration to animals. Farmers exposed to extension services may have been provided with education and training on the need to use prescribed antibiotics [37].…”

Beyond the military metaphor

“…This can erase the voices and/or needs of vulnerable groups, perpetuate asymmetrical power relationships and inequalities, and justify collateral damage. The narrow creation of 'fronts' with regards to AMR does little to address wider structures of antimicrobial use in contexts, such as agriculture or aquaculture, which exist outside of individual neoliberal models of human antibiotic consumption (Chauhan et al 2018). Further, these 'fronts' can preclude certain kinds of interventions and expertise traditionally considered 'soft' (feminine), such as the arts and humanities, in comparison to 'hard' (masculine) sciences.…”