One Health for Rabies Elimination: China Rabies Annual Conference in 2023

The China Rabies Annual Conference in 2023 was held in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, from May 12 to 13. With the theme of "One Health for Rabies Elimination", the conference was hosted by the Chinese Preventive Medicine Association (CMPA), the Chinese Association of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, and the China Working Dog Management Association. It was organized by the Rabies Control and Prevention Working Committee of the CMPA, and co-organized by Shanxi Preventive Medicine Association and Shanxi Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

Over the years, China has made great achievements in rabies control and prevention. At present, the incidence and mortality rate of human infection with rabies have declined to the lowest level historically, which has laid an important foundation for the eventual elimination of human rabies. Since its beginning in 2012, the China Rabies Annual Conference has played an important role in promoting academic exchanges, disseminating new ideas and technologies, and popularing knowledge on rabies control and prevention to the public. After 12 years of cultivation and development, it has become an important brand conference in the field of rabies control and prevention in China. In the future, the CMPA, the Chinese Association of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, and the China Working Dog Management Association will continue to give full play to their respective advantages, unite the forces of all parties, jointly promote academic exchanges on rabies, lead the prevention and control work, strive to "achieve zero human rabies deaths by 2030" proposed by the World Health Organization, and make due contributions to the construction of a healthy China.

The theme "One Health for Rabies Elimination" reminds us of the unusual significance of this conference, and we are constantly working towards this goal. Then we should do a good job in the following aspects. First, we should reinforce the joint prevention and control between government departments, continue to establish and improve the monitoring strategy, and coordinate the implementation of infectious diseases across the country. Second, we need to enhance management and immunity, especially the management of rural dogs and street dogs, and also to implement departmental responsibilities, promote the immunization against dog injuries, improve vaccination capacities, and do well in control and prevention at the source. Third, we need carry out post-exposure disposal, strengthen the professional training for outpatient staff, improve the professional quality, and enhance the standardization, normalization and accessibility of disposal clinics. Fourth, we must attach importance to the surveillance of rabies in wild animals. Fifth, extensive publicity and education should be carried out to raise public awareness of protection and ensure proper vaccination. The China Rabies Annual Conference provides a good platform for exchanging experiences in rabies control and prevention, and makes greater contributions to the further improvement of China's rabies control and prevention capacity and level and the protection of human health.