Meletis, E.; Jarynowski, A.; Maksymowicz, S.; Kostoulas, P.; Belik, V. Animal Health Discourse during Ecological Crises in the Media—Lessons Learnt from the Flood in Thessaly from the One Health Perspective. Vet. Sci.2024, 11, 140.
Meletis, E.; Jarynowski, A.; Maksymowicz, S.; Kostoulas, P.; Belik, V. Animal Health Discourse during Ecological Crises in the Media—Lessons Learnt from the Flood in Thessaly from the One Health Perspective. Vet. Sci. 2024, 11, 140.
Meletis, E.; Jarynowski, A.; Maksymowicz, S.; Kostoulas, P.; Belik, V. Animal Health Discourse during Ecological Crises in the Media—Lessons Learnt from the Flood in Thessaly from the One Health Perspective. Vet. Sci.2024, 11, 140.
Meletis, E.; Jarynowski, A.; Maksymowicz, S.; Kostoulas, P.; Belik, V. Animal Health Discourse during Ecological Crises in the Media—Lessons Learnt from the Flood in Thessaly from the One Health Perspective. Vet. Sci. 2024, 11, 140.
Abstract
Due to the increasing risk of extreme events caused by climate change (i.e. floods, fires, hurricanes) or wars, European veterinary public health may need some improvement. Utilizing a mix of qualitative (participatory observation) and quantitative methods (Internet mining), we analyzed the Greek media responses to the millennial flood in Thessaly (September 2023), focusing on animal health (including wild, companion animals and livestock) and public sentiment towards epizootic/epidemic threats. The study revealed a gap in crisis management plans regarding veterinary-related issues, emphasizing the need for comprehensive emergency response strategies. Our findings show how: (i) lay-referral system is projecting perception of epidemic threats into the population; (ii) emotional load of images of animal carcasses is misused by media creators aiming for big audience; (iii) pets owners are creating on-line communities for searching and treatment of their pets. Our results stress the importance of integrating crisis communication in consecutive phases of the discourse, such as (i) weather change; (ii) acute flood; (iii) recovery; (iv) outbreaks, into veterinary practices to better prepare for such disasters.
Keywords
crisis management; veterinary public health; animal health; perception of animals; One Health
Subject
Public Health and Healthcare, Public Health and Health Services
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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