1. Academe, Government and Private Sector Collaboration on Rabies Control and Prevention in Maramag, Bukidnon, Philippines
Jose M. OBEDENCIO Jr.*1, Lucky Ray G. CARANGCARANG1, Ruan P. OBEDENCIO2, Alan P. DARGANTES1, Jose V. OBEDENCIO3 and Evangeline C. REVILLA4
 1College of Veterinary Medicine, Central Mindanao University, Bukidnon, Philippines
2Office of the Municipal Administrator, Local Government Unit of Maramag, Bukidnon, Philippines
3Office of the Municipal Mayor, Local Government Unit of Maramag, Bukidnon, Philippines
4Municipal Health Office, Local Government Unit of Maramag, Bukidnon, Philippines

2. End the epidemics of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) which include rabies by 2030

3. Rabies continues to be a public health problem in the Philippines.
Deaths due to rabies in the Philippines
- 2016: 179
- 2015: 217
- 2014: 236
- 2013: 205
- 2012: 213
- 2011: 219
- 2010: 257
 The country is one of the top 10 countries with rabies problem.
The Philippines ranked 6th in the world with high incidence of human rabies ( Ranked 3rd in 1999 )
Responsible for the deaths of 200 to 300 Filipinos per year
National Rabies Prevention and Control Program

4. National Rabies Prevention and Control Program
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
National Rabies Prevention and Control Program

5. Province
Number of Human Rabies
PANGASINAN 15
N. Ecija PHO 13
Camarines Sur
Tarlac PHO 7
Quezon
CAPIZ
DAVAO Norte
ISABELA 6
Batangas
Bukidnon
Misamis Oriental
Albay 5
ILOILO PROVINCE
Total: Lanao del Norte
DAVAO CITY
LA UNION 4
Cavite
The province of Bukidnon is one of the provinces with the highest number of human rabies cases in the Philippines
 The country is one of the top 10 countries with rabies problem.
The Philippines ranked 6th in the world with high incidence of human rabies ( Ranked 3rd in 1999 )
Responsible for the deaths of 200 to 300 Filipinos per year
Every ten minutes someone dies from rabies
Each year, rabies kills almost 70,000 people worldwide ( OIE 2015).
especially affects children in developing countries
dogs are the main reservoir of rabies

6. With the passing into law of Republic Act 9482 in 2007 (Rabies Act of 2007), the national government has implemented several activities and interventions for rabies prevention and control.

7. RA 9482 – Rabies Act 2007
Provincial, municipal, barangay ordinances
???
2017 – 1 case
In Maramag, Bukidnon, there are around 1,500 cases of animal bites every year.

8. Maramag, Bukidnon 1st class municipality Population: 102, 089
km2
Landlocked municipality in a landlocked province

9. At present, the Municipality of Maramag does not have a municipal veterinarian to address the pressing public health issue.
Most of the activities and interventions are just an offshoot of the national government’s program and has never been tailored to the local needs in the municipality.

10. Considering the absence of an office to handle this concern, the issue of rabies in the municipality has always been placed in the backseat on the programs of the local government.

11. Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices on Rabies Control and Prevention among Residents in Maramag, Bukidnon, Philippines
Conducted together with LGU Maramag

12. Distribution of number of respondents by level of knowledge. (n = 400)
There were 9.5% of respondents with a “poor” level knowledge about rabies; 42.5% of them got “low”; 16.3% had “moderate” level; 18.3% were considered as “good” and only 13.5% had an “excellent” level of knowledge.
Only 18% knew the cause of rabies. Less than half of the respondents knew that rabies is primarily transmitted to human by bites of infected animals, symptoms of the disease in animals and humans. Only 40% knew the availability of vaccines for humans and where to obtain it. Only 37% knew the recommended age of vaccination and 35% knew where to obtain rabies vaccines for animals. Only 17% knew that they need to observe dogs that have bitten somebody.
5.25% knew of RA 9482
Distribution of number of respondents by level of knowledge. (n = 400)

13. However, all of them have a positive attitude towards rabies prevention and control.
Percentage distribution of respondent on Positive Attitude statements. (n = 400)

14. Distribution of dog owner respondents by practice level. (n = 372)
Out of the 372 dog owner respondents, 56.2% had a “poor” level of practice rabies control and prevention; 12.6% of dog owners had a “fair” level, and 31.2% had a “good” level of practice. For non-dog owners, 3.6% of them had a “fair” level of practice, and 96.4% were considered “good”.
Distribution of dog owner respondents by practice level. (n = 372)

15. Focus Group Discussion
In the Focus Group Discussions, it was determined that there were respondents that practice tawal (indigenous treatment, Visayan). There were also respondents who practiced the consumption of the dog’s liver to counter rabies and the wrapping of the dead body of a human who’s suffering from rabies.
Indigenous treatment (i.e. tawal, tandok, anting-anting)
Consumption of dog’s liver
Practices are passed on from previous generations

16. Cooperative Rabies Management Strategies
LGU Maramag
CMU
PVO Bukidnon
BPH
PVO Agusan del Norte
NFA
GARC
GREASE Network
BPH
DepEd

17. Dog Vaccinations CMU - Volunteers -Training PVMA R10 -Volunteers
-Supplies
LGU
-System
In the past, vaccination was only implemented by the Agriculture Technologist (ATs) of the LGU through a door-to-door and fixed point vaccination strategy. With only one AT assigned per barangay, the task is quite impossible considering that the AT handles various programs of their office.
In the recent years, the academe offered to regularly help in the vaccination of dogs by utilizing student volunteers in the vaccination drive of the municipality. These vaccination activities were either scheduled throughout the year or in March and September during the Rabies Awareness Month and World Rabies Day activities, respectively.
The private sectors also joined the dog vaccination activities through provision of medical supplies and food for the volunteers. A regional veterinary organization also regularly sends volunteer veterinarians to help augment the manpower.
In August of 2017, a training of barangay dog vaccinators was conducted to have a regular volunteer coming from the communities. The training was implemented by LGU Maramag, Central Mindanao University and Provincial Veterinary Office of Bukidnon with resource persons coming from the said agencies. The training was able to produce 40 volunteer dog vaccinators with two vaccinators from each barangay. The presence of volunteers coming from the barangays will enable the community to take ownership of the project as well as increase the pool of manpower for such activity.

18. Dog Population, and Vaccination coverage
CMU
- Instrument Development
Community
- Active Participation
LGU
-CBS
- Manpower
The dog population was estimated with an assumption of 1:10 dog:human ratio. Since the municipality has a population of around 100,000, it is estimated that the dog population is around 10,000. In the implementation of the new strategies for rabies management, population is a key factor in determining the vaccination coverage. Recognizing that the population estimate may be underestimated, a community based survey (CBS) is being conducted. Survey instruments were developed through coordination of concerned offices from Central Mindanao University and LGU Maramag. As of this writing, the result of the CBS is not out yet.
Without the data from the CBS, the vaccination coverage is not yet calculated. However, with the population data using the 1:10 dog:human ratio, the vaccination coverage is at 40% as of June With the additional volunteer vaccinators, the vaccination coverage is expected to increase before the year ends.

19. - Development of Materials
Community Education
GARC
- Development of Materials
LGU
-IEC Supplies
CMU
-Training
DepEd
-Manpower
Rabies awareness seminars in the community were done in the past during barangay assemblies and LGU initiated activities. CMU also conducted awareness campaigns during fairs and events. However, the KAP results showed that these initiatives were not that successful in its objectives. This can be due to various reasons. One of which is that the audience is not interested for some reasons. The materials may not be appropriate and the number of activities may not be enough.
With the results of the KAP study conducted, it is quite obvious that much should be on getting the information across the various sectors in the community. Thus, a training of rabies educators was conducted to develop a number of educators and trainors on rabies control and prevention. The training was participated by teachers from the different elementary and secondary schools within the municipality. Private and government schools sent their respective teachers that will serve as trainors in their schools to increase the number of rabies educators in the municipality.
The training was conducted by Central Mindanao University. The participants were provided with materials that can be utilized in the activities in their own school and community. Some of the materials came from Global Alliance for Rabies Control (GARC), an international private organization. Other materials are produced and developed by CMU. These materials are age appropriate and in various forms such as booklets, flip charts, storybooks, coloring books and videos, to name a few.
The current rabies awareness campaign program is now geared towards educating the vulnerable population (15 years old and below) through school based information drive. The barangay is also tasked to increase rabies awareness activities using the materials provided.

20. Continuing Research KAP Epidemiology Stakeholder Analysis
Realizing that more can still be done to improve the strategies implemented, several researches are still on going to help the community understand better the disease and its management.

21. Policy Recommendations
Strategies
Policy
Sustainable
Program
RABIES FREE PHILIPPINES
2020
The results of the KAP study as well as the output of the cooperation of the various sectors were presented to the concerned personalities/committees of the Municipal Legislative Council in aid of legislation. At present, the Municipal Legislative Council is now in the process of amending a decade old municipal ordinance on rabies management to be responsive to the current needs. Resource materials were also provided to the barangay councils so that they can make their respective barangay ordinances.

22. Thank you very much Maraming Salamat 대단히 감사합니다.