A One Health, participatory epidemiology assessment of anthrax (Bacillus anthracis) management in Western Uganda

•Participants reported anthrax cases that do not match official reports.•Knowledge of anthrax had no association with participant response to disease.•Economic and social needs were of primary importance in decision-making.•Livelihood-based decision-making may not respond to education alone.•This methodology revealed the complex context of anthrax in Western Uganda.

Sporadic anthrax outbreaks have occurred in and around Uganda's Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP) for years, affecting wildlife, domestic animals, and humans. Reported outbreaks (2004–2005 and 2010) in QENP collectively killed over 500 wild animals and over 400 domestic animals. A 2011 outbreak in Sheema district temporarily froze local markets while killing two humans and seven bovines. One Health is multidisciplinary at its core, yet studies sometimes focus on the effects of animals on human health to the detriment of investigating the surrounding ecological and cultural contexts. Participatory methods connect problems – such as disease – to their context. A multidisciplinary team used participatory epidemiology and conventional structured questionnaires to investigate the impacts of anthrax on human livelihoods and the related perceptions of conservation, public health, and veterinary health efforts in the QENP area. Proximities to previous anthrax outbreaks and to QENP were treated as risk factors in the collection and evaluation of data. Participants' feedback indicates that anthrax prevalence may be greater than officially reported. Community member perceptions about anthrax and other diseases appear to be more closely related to their proximity to QENP than their proximity to anthrax outbreaks. Neither risk factor had a strong effect on knowledge of disease, nor any effect on behaviors associated with disease response or control. Instead, participants reported that social pressures, the economics of poverty, and the lack of health and veterinary infrastructure highly influenced responses to disease. The complex connections between the social needs and the economic context of these communities seem to be undermining current anthrax control and education measures. This livelihood-based decision-making may be unlikely to respond to educational intervention alone. This study provides a strong base for further research and for improvements in effective disease control.