WESTERN CANADA: The Chair of the Canada-West Swine Health Intelligence Network (CWSHIN) and Executive Director of Alberta Pork, Darcy Fitzgerald, is pleased to announce that Dr. Jette Christensen, DVM, PhD, has accepted the position of manager for the organization, taking over the helm from Dr. Chris Byra, who is retiring at the end of April.
On behalf of the CWSHIN board and the western Canadian hog sector, Fitzgerald expressed his gratitude to Dr. Byra for his pioneering role in launching CWSHIN. “Dr. Byra has been key in helping CWSHIN make significant progress toward our goals for swine health and disease surveillance in Western Canada,” Fitzgerald said. “We thank him for his commitment and contribution, and wish him all the best in his retirement.”
Dr. Christensen is a veterinary epidemiologist with more than 30 years’ experience in all phases of national animal health monitoring, surveillance and disease control programs in Denmark and Canada. She brings with her extensive skills in swine practice and epidemiological surveillance, along with a thorough understanding of the role of animal health in international trade. “I look forward to continuing Dr. Byra’s extensive work at CWSHIN, and providing veterinarians and hog farmers with readily useful and valid information on the health of their swine herds,” said Dr. Christensen.
Dr. Glen Duizer, Animal Health Surveillance Veterinarian with Manitoba’s Chief Veterinary Office, noted that surveillance is all about communications. “CWSHIN’s team approach to swine health and disease surveillance in Western Canada, drawing together local and regional information and flowing it into the larger national framework, is excellent,” he said. “It was a pleasure working with Dr. Byra and we look forward to continued collaboration with Dr. Christensen.”
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CWSHIN is a partnership between Manitoba Pork, Sask Pork, Alberta Pork and BC Pork, with technical and financial support from Manitoba Agriculture, Saskatchewan Agriculture, Alberta Agriculture, BC Agriculture and the Western Canadian Association of Swine Veterinarians. CWSHIN serves western Canadian veterinarians and pork producers through detecting emerging swine health issues early; integrating information for response to regional health issues; providing evidence of the absence of disease to support trade; and providing western Canadian producers and veterinarians with information about endemic diseases.
