Quick reference posters for rabies
Sometimes there are so many different guidelines and detailed documents that the core information becomes lost. When the information is most needed, it is sometimes not possible to open the latest international guidelines for rabies to get the answers that you need. This is especially important for field staff who need to remain mobile and need the key information at-hand to excel in their roles as the first line of defense against rabies. For this reason, GARC has developed a series of “quick reference” posters to address some of the more confusing or detailed information in a simple and easy-to-understand way. We have taken some of the key information from the international reference documents and guidelines and condensed it into highly visual posters.
GARC has currently developed 3 posters for you to download, print or share. These are free resources to help you, your community, and your country to eliminate rabies!
The first two quick reference posters that we have developed are the ‘Rabies signs in dogs’ and ‘Rabies symptoms in humans’ posters.
While these two posters may not be exhaustive in the list of signs and symptoms for rabies, they do list the most commonly observed ones. This information is critical for all those working with either potentially rabid animals, or people potentially exposed to the disease. Not only is this important as a reminder to experts such as clinical staff and animal health workers who may deal with rabies daily, but it is also critical for those with limited rabies knowledge. By having quick reference posters such as these posted in clinics for example, health professionals with less experience in rabies (perhaps those in rabies-free areas or those that specialize in other diseases or conditions) can use these to ensure that rabies is considered and hopefully rapidly identified.
More recently, we developed the wound categorization quick reference poster. This poster focuses on being able correctly and easily categorize human exposures to potentially rabid animals. To do this, we took the guidelines from the latest WHO Expert Consultation report and condensed it down into a short and very visual poster. The categories are listed with easy reference pictures for immediate comprehension in any language. Furthermore, the images and text have been colored to show progression from category I exposures (minimal risk) being listed in green, to high-risk Category III exposures listed in red.
All the posters are available in English and French and can be accessed and downloaded for free on our website. GARC will continue to develop more easy reference guides and posters for your use as we aim to ensure that all the critical information about rabies and its elimination remains easily accessible at any time, especially when it is most needed!
If you have any requests or ideas for a poster or diagram, please contact us. We want to deliver resources that are helpful to you and your community.
Article contributed by: Dr Terence Scott (Technical Lead, Rabies).