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The Role of Veterinary Research in Human Society
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK22905/

“Between animal and human medicine there is no dividing line—nor should there be. The object is different but the experience obtained constitutes the basis of all medicine.” Rudolf Virchow (1821–1902)

Virchow's statement is as wise today as it was over a century ago. That all animal species, including Homo sapiens, are related and that knowledge gained in one species benefits all lead to the concept of “One Medicine”. The One Medicine approach takes advantage of commonalities among species; few diseases affect exclusively one group of animals (wildlife, domestic animals, or humans). On the basis of that view, Schwabe (1984) asserts that veterinary medicine is fundamentally a human health activity. All activities of veterinary scientists affect human health either directly through biomedical research and public health work or indirectly by addressing domestic animal, wildlife, or environmental health. Moreover, veterinary scientists have a responsibility to protect human health and well-being by ensuring food security and safety, preventing and controlling emerging infectious zoonoses, protecting environments and ecosystems, assisting in bioterrorism and agroterrorism preparedness, advancing treatments and controls for nonzoonotic diseases (such as vaccine-preventable illnesses and chronic diseases), contributing to public health, and engaging in medical research (Pappaioanou, 2004). Just as the practice of veterinary medicine contributes to our understanding of all medicine or One Medicine, so must veterinary research. It follows that veterinary research is, at a fundamental level, a human health activity. The centrality of veterinary research and its critical role at the interface between human and animal health are often not understood and undervalued. A vision for veterinary research and its contribution to advancing One Medicine and providing solutions for today's and tomorrow's animal and human health problems is illustrated below (Figure 1-1).

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