Conference Abstract | Volume 8, Abstract ELIC202539 (Poster 016) | Published: 29 Jul 2025
Virgil Kuassi Lokossou1, Aishat Bukola Usman2,&, Marianne Laurent Comlan2, Marta Guerra3, Peter Thomas, Adama Ndir3, Felix Agbla1, Melchior Aïssi1
1West African Health Organization, Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, 2ECOWAS Regional Center for Surveillance and Disease Control, Abuja, Nigeria, 3Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
&Corresponding author: Aishat Bukola Usman, West African Health Organization, Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, Email: ausman@prj.wahooas.org
Received: 03 Apr 2025, Accepted: 09 Jul 2025, Published: 29 Jul 2025
Domain: FETP, Health Workforce Development
Keywords: One Health, Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP), Multisectoral collaboration, Human health, ECOWAS
©Virgil Kuassi Lokossou et al Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health (ISSN: 2664-2824). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cite this article: Virgil Kuassi Lokossou et al, Enhancing multisectoral collaboration for workforce development by introducing the One Health curriculum in Frontline FETP in the ECOWAS Region, July 2024. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health. 2025;8(ConfProc5):00160. https://doi.org/10.37432/ JIEPH-CONFPRO5-00160
The Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) in the ECOWAS region focuses on enhancing early detection and rapid response to disease outbreaks. Introducing the One Health curriculum in FETP is critical in addressing public health challenges by integrating human, animal, and environmental health sectors. The One Health Frontline Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) curriculum is designed to equip public health professionals with a multidisciplinary approach to address health challenges at the human-animal-environment interface. This regional approach strengthens multisectoral collaboration and ensures a transdisciplinary network of field epidemiologists who can coordinate and share data effectively across sectors.
A Joint CDC-WAHO training of trainers workshop on One Health FETP Frontline Curriculum was held from July 22 to 26, 2024, in Saly, Senegal. A teach-back method was employed, with participants presenting curriculum topics in PowerPoint, group discussions, and case studies. Mentors from 15 ECOWAS countries were trained to implement the curriculum. They engaged in exercises, multisectoral discussions, and field activity preparations. Feedback on the curriculum was collected daily to improve content and training delivery.
The curriculum integrates epidemiology, veterinary medicine, and environmental health to foster a holistic understanding of disease prevention, detection, and response. A new field activity is the intersectoral site visits so that participants can see how other sectors conduct similar surveillance activities and multi-sectoral outbreak investigations. Sixty participants, including 36 mentors, from 15 ECOWAS countries attended the workshop. Participants represented human, animal, and environmental health sectors, with additional support from development partners like CDC, FAO, WHO, and USAID. The workshop successfully familiarized participants with One Health principles and how to apply them to surveillance, outbreak investigations, and data management. Feedback collected during the workshop highlighted the need for further adjustments in curriculum content and mentor training strategies to accommodate diverse regional needs.
The introduction of the One Health curriculum to the FETP Frontline training in the ECOWAS region successfully built One Health multisectoral collaboration and enhanced public health surveillance capacity. The workshop’s outcomes show a promising start toward improved detection, response, and management of zoonotic diseases. Future steps include cascading training at national levels, continued evaluation, and curriculum adaptation to local contexts.
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