Global animal health has been identified by WSU as an area of research strength and strategic investment. The WSU Foundation recently prepared a Q&A on the topic with Guy Palmer, professor of veterinary microbiology and pathology and director of the two-year-old WSU School for Global Animal Health.

Here is an excerpt from that Q&A:

Q: Why is global animal health important?

A: Influenza, HIV, SARS, and E. coli-related illness - roughly 60 to 70 percent of all human infectious diseases - emerge from animals. To prevent these types of diseases from spreading to humans, we must catch them early, in their animal hosts.

The high costs of post-exposure treatment and loss of human life, as well as new opportunities to improve overall human health, are much too great to delay the study and control of disease in animals.

Q: What makes WSU the ideal home for the School for Global Animal Health?

A: First, our world-class faculty combine the best in scientific discovery with on-the-ground understanding of problems, both in the United States and globally.

Second, our partnerships through the Washington Global Health Alliance with 10 other leading institutions in the state allow for an incredible synergy that doesn’t exist elsewhere.

And third, our university leadership is fundamentally dedicated to global health and to the excellence of the school.