Assessment of factors affecting adherence to withdrawal periods for veterinary drugs among cattle farmers in nabiswera sub-county, nakasongola district

Abstract

Background: Livestock is an important subsector of agriculture in Uganda. The cattle farmers are challenged with numerous pests and diseases mostly tick borne diseases. They manage these diseases with veterinary drugs whose specific withdrawal period must be adhered to before animal products can be safely taken as food for human consumption. Poor practices such as non-adherence to withdrawal periods result into drug residues in veterinary products. Adverse effects of drug residues include hypersensitivity reactions, risk of cancer, fanconi syndrome, antimicrobial resistance and international market ban among others. The World Health Organization (WHO) advocated the need to promote awareness of drug withdrawal period, education, enforcement, regular monitoring and surveillance of drug use. However, the prevalence of high levels of drug residues in cattle products in Uganda indicates non-adherence to withdrawal periods. Objective: To assess factors affecting adherence to withdrawal periods for veterinary drugs among cattle farmers in Nabiswera sub-county, Nakasongola district. Methods: A descriptive cross sectional study employing quantitative methods for data collection was conducted in May 2023 in Nabiswera sub-county, Nakasongola district. A proportionate sample size of 320 farmers who had consented to participate in the study, those who had been residents for the last 6 months and above was interviewed. A standardized pretested interviewer guided questionnaire was used for data collection. Data obtained was entered into Epidata computer software and then analysed using IBM SPSS statistics 27 computer software. Results: Of the 320 respondents, 72.2% were male. Level of adherence to veterinary drug withdrawal periods was low at 7.2% and the factor found to affect adherence was; knowledge about veterinary withdrawal periods (OR=5.717, P-value= 0.033). Conclusion: Farmers’ level of adherence to veterinary drug withdrawal periods varied greatly for milk and meat with more adherences in milk than meat. However, the overall adherence to veterinary drug withdrawal periods among cattle farmers was significantly low. Farmers’ knowledge as a factor was found to significantly affect adherence to veterinary drug withdrawal periods. Recommendations: Pharmacists should educate farmers and all veterinary personnel about withdrawal periods of different drugs and their significance. The ministry of agriculture should ensure continuous education on risks associated with drug residues beyond maximum residue limit (MRL) and the importance of adherence to withdrawal periods in the fight against drug residue to all stake holders such as farmers, veterinary personnel and consumers.