%0 Thesis
%9 Master Essay
%A Rodriguez, Samantha E
%D 2016
%F pittir:30412
%I University of Pittsburgh
%T A process evaluation of the Oral Rabies Vaccination (ORV) Program in Allegheny County
%U http://d-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu/30412/
%X Rabies Virus (RABV) is a deadly pathogen that causes disease in humans and animals. In Pennsylvania, RABV is endemic among wild animals, such as raccoons, skunks, and bats. The public health significance of this issue is in part due to the rare possibility of RABV transmission to humans, thus it is imperative that public health institutions control wild animal rabies cases. The “Raccoon Oral Rabies Vaccination (ORV) Program” is a one-week program that has taken place in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, every August since 2002. The main goal of the program is to manage wild animal rabies cases by orally vaccinating raccoons, which are the primary carriers of RABV in Pennsylvania. Since the program is planned to continue for years to come, with the goal of eventually eliminating RABV, it is essential to evaluate the implementation or process of the program. This preliminary evaluation will help gain knowledge about program activities and fine-tune existing program operations and strategies, mainly focusing on stakeholder involvement (i.e., organizers and volunteers). This evaluation may also be useful to document activities of raccoon baiting week for potential replication in other counties. Our preliminary process evaluation utilized responses to a stakeholder survey collected shortly after the program end date in August, 2016. The survey was divided into various aspects of the program, including participant details, recruitment of participants, training to bait, and general baiting experiences. Many respondents to our post-baiting survey made helpful comments and suggestions on the various aspects of the ORV baiting program. Their insight into the program was useful for documenting overall activities and providing recommendations. Although some limitations to this essay exist, the importance of evaluating the process of the ORV baiting program is more significant. We learned that there are various aspects of the program that may benefit by minor adjustment. These include recruitment strategy, scheduling methods, training plans, and overall baiting experience. By offering recommendations that refine various features of the program process, we want to continue the ORV baiting program in a more efficient and enjoyable manner for years to come.