Workshop on Surveillance and Control of Rabies for the Middle East and Central Asia

An 11-day on-site course organized by the Pasteur Institute of Iran with the support of many partners including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the PREDEMICS consortium.  It is planned for  October 8th to 19th 2017  at the Pasteur Institut of Iran.

The purpose of this course is to provide a practical training on rabies with a special focus on Middle East and Central Asia for students and professionals of animal and human public health sectors. The course will emphasize the need for a multidisciplinary approach and intersectoral cooperation. The training objectives below have been constructed to address critical issues surrounding the present rabies situation in endemic countries, in particular in Middle East and Central Asia.

Training objectives:
• To increase awareness and communication about rabies in Middle East and Central Asia.
• To identify gaps and discuss opportunities for rabies control and elimination in Middle East and Central Asia and elaborate on strategic and practical solutions.
• To improve knowledge and practice on rabies epidemiological data in particular rabies incidence.
• To discuss the present situation of rabies prophylaxis in humans and propose practical solutions to increase access to post-exposure prophylaxis.
• To increase knowledge on dog rabies vaccination and other approaches for dog population management.
• To create an inter-sectorial regional rabies network and to promote one health approach and dog vaccination to control rabies in Middle East and Central Asia.

The course will be in English and take advantage of the new possibilities offered by e-Learning and already existing documents from WHO, OIE, GARC, other international organizations and networks.

An online pre-training assessment tool involving 70 hours of personnel work over  two months will be provided to select applicants and prepare trainees to participate actively in discussions and practical activities during the workshop. The on-site course (11 days) will focus on practical sessions, such as bench work, demonstrations and hands-on sessions, which will complement the theoretical part (pre-training session and lectures).

Who should apply: physicians, veterinarians, and specialists in infectious diseases, virology and/or epidemiology with at least a bachelor degree and preferentially a master degree. Public health officers involved in the control of zoonotic diseases are strongly encouraged to participate. Preference is given to applications from Middle East, Central Asia, North Africa and Eastern Europe followed by other rabies endemic countries. However, be aware that the selection to the course does not guarantee the VISA approval. There are no registration fees and local expenses (accommodation, food) will be covered. The organizing committee will be able to provide several travel grants on request.

The Application deadline is April 15th 2017

For more information about the workshop and  to apply please visit the PREDEMICS website (http://predemics.biomedtrain.eu).