The van Bakeren Foundation embraces the One Health concept in every endeavor. That is, we reach out to different professions and stakeholders to maximize the opportunities to carry out our important work. We don’t wait for things to happen; we take action.
The van Bakeren Foundation’s mission is to prevent the spread of diseases between animals and people through research, education and outreach, and providing wellness veterinary care for dogs and cats owned by individuals in need. Specific activities that we perform include:
- Research: Perform basic research to learn what is already known about common zoonotic diseases in Northeast Ohio. Collect data from our Vets on Wheels program to understand the prevalence of common zoonotic diseases in Northeast Ohio.
- Education: Inform the general public about common zoonotic diseases where they live, work, and play, and how to be safe in those environments.
- Outreach: Reach out to key stakeholders for purposes of sharing information with one another to better understand the problem of common zoonotic diseases.
- Health care: Provide wellness veterinary care services (i.e. physical examination, testing for infectious and parasitic diseases, and providing vaccinations and parasite control) for dogs and cats owned by needy individuals in Northeast Ohio (starting in Cuyahoga County). Needy individuals include those who have financial or transportation constraints that makes accessing veterinary care services for their pets difficult or impossible.
