KSVDL Helps Expand Capabilities of Johne’s Disease Risk Assessor Mobile App
By Janelle Marney
The art of writing with pen and paper is becoming a thing of the past. New technological advancements make it easier to have everything online and in the palm of your hands. With the new Johne’s Disease Risk Assessor App, producers can file their Johne’s Herd Risk Assessment and Management Plan (RAMP) at the touch of a button.
The University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine created the application, while individuals from the Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostics Laboratory (KSVDL) provided consultation about expanding the app to include cow-calf operations. Dr. Gregg Hanzlicek, KSVDL, was one who helped in this process.
“The app was already an awesome tool designed for dairy veterinarians,” Hanzlicek said, “We thought it would also be a great tool for cow-calf veterinarains so we asked Dr. Collins and Tom Bennett if they could redesign it for this purpose.”
So far, there are approximately 700 users for the Johne’s Disease Risk Assessor App. The app helps convert the RAMP into an electronic version. It is currently only available for Apple devices; however, they are currently sorting details for it to be available on Android systems.
“The goal is to reduce or eliminate risks for the introduction and/or spread of Johne’s disease. Implementation of management practices aimed at Johne’s disease control will increase herd biosecurity and reduce the risk for transmission of other fecal-oral transmitted pathogens,” said Thomas Bennet, senior information processing consultant at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine.
After downloading the app, users will see seven tabs:
- History
- Calf
- Heifer
- Adult/Replacement
- Summary
- Recommendations
- PDF Viewer
Users should start completing the process by starting with “history” and moving along the tabs to the right. Once users complete each tab of information, they are then able to save the document as a pdf version. If users wish, they may also print the document.
With the help of the app, gathering all the information is a simpler process. Veterinarians can easily access the information and have a basic understanding of the work that has been previously done with implementations towards Johne’s disease. Users will be able to enter the veterinarian’s information (including name, clinic name and clinic address) into the app as well.
With the new Johne’s Risk Assessor App, users can easily have their RAMP available to them at any moment and at the palm of their hands.
“It’s a really cool tool and it’s time to start getting the word out and doing something about the disease,” Hanzlicek said.