The Avian Contact Study is a cross-sectional questionnaire of poultry workers and other individuals who have contact with domestic and/or wild birds in the UK. The questionnaire was launched online in May 2024 and in-person responses were gathered at the British Pig and Poultry Fair in Birmingham on 15 and 16 May 2024. This Data Note documents questionnaire development, content and delivery methods. Data collected include information on demographics, seasonal influenza vaccination, avian influenza exposure, contact with birds and people, and awareness of avian influenza. This Data Note provides insights into the first data release collected up to 31 July 2024 for 225 respondents. Data have been released as a University of Bristol held dataset available upon request. The Avian Contact Study provides a pilot resource for research into avian influenza from a zoonotic perspective.

Background: Following the 2021–2022 avian influenza panzootic in birds and wildlife, seasonal influenza vaccines have been advised to occupationally high‐risk groups to reduce the likelihood of coincidental infection in humans with both seasonal and avian influenza A viruses.Methods: We developed and launched a questionnaire aimed at poultry workers and people in direct contact with birds to understand awareness and uptake of seasonal influenza vaccination. We collected responses in‐person at an agricultural trade event and online.Findings: The questionnaire was completed by 225 individuals from across the United Kingdom. The most commonly reported reason for vaccination was protection against seasonal influenza (82%, 63 of 77). Nearly, all individuals aged ≥65 years reported that the vaccine was recommended for them (24 of 28). There was no difference in recommendation for occupational groups. Most vaccinees were aged over 60 years (60%, 29 of 48); however, coverage was lower than expected in the ≥ 65 target group. Vaccination in those exposed to avian influenza was low (32%, 9 of 28). Not having enough time was the single most reported reason for not getting vaccinated in those intending to. Individuals unintending to be vaccinated perceived natural immunity to be better than receiving the vaccine as well as lack of awareness and time.Conclusions: Our findings suggest that targeted campaigns in occupationally exposed groups need to be undertaken to improve communication of information and access to vaccine clinics. We recommend co‐production methods to optimise this public health strategy for increased knowledge and future vaccine uptake.

The Avian Contact Study is a cross-sectional questionnaire of poultry workers and other individuals who have contact with domestic and/or wild birds in the UK. The questionnaire was launched online in May 2024 and in-person responses were gathered at the British Pig and Poultry Fair in Birmingham on 15 and 16 May 2024. This Data Note documents questionnaire development, content and delivery methods. Data collected include information on demographics, seasonal influenza vaccination, avian influenza exposure, contact with birds and people, and awareness of avian influenza. This Data Note provides insights into the first data release collected up to 31 July 2024 for 225 respondents. Data have been released as a University of Bristol held dataset available upon request. The Avian Contact Study provides a pilot resource for research into avian influenza from a zoonotic perspective.

Health checks aim to improve the health of the population by identifying individuals with risk factors earlier and intervening to prevent disease. The role of commissioners is to ensure health checks provide as much benefit as possible for taxpayer funds invested into them. As such, evidence of the potential impacts of different commissioning choices is beneficial in this decision-making process. System dynamics modelling can be used to provide this evidence by modelling the health check programme using a pre-existing cohort model of a given population. This modelling considers local data, literature findings, and stakeholder views, from which nine different scenarios of a local health check programme have been tested. These scenarios found that extending the duration of health checks to 20 years and improving treatment uptake for those with high blood pressure or high cholesterol reduced rates of cardiovascular disease, improved healthy life expectancy and reduced years lived in ill health. In contrast, improving attendance in the most deprived quintile of the population made very little change to the health of the population overall, although a larger effect was observed in the most deprived areas. These findings helped guide local commissioning decisions by showing the long-term impact of different health check scenarios.

Introduction: Recent intercontinental spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) among kept and wild birds, and transmission to mammalian hosts, including cattle and humans, has heightened the need to review public health risk assessments. Biosecurity measures (BMs) are essential for limiting disease spread, but how widely different practices are implemented is not fully known. Methods: Here, we report on the uptake of BMs and risk perception of avian influenza virus (AIV) in the context of preventing zoonotic transmission to persons potentially at high risk of exposure. Questionnaire data from 225 people in contact with birds in the UK (Avian Contact Study, May to July 2024) were analysed. Results: We found hand washing after contact with birds was the most common BM implemented (89%, 196 of 218), followed by using disinfecting footwear dips (78%, 170 of 218). Individuals in contact with a higher number of birds were more likely to use at least one personal protective equipment (PPE) measure for the face or body or at least one footwear‐related PPE measure. Perceived risk of AIV to bird health was high for individuals in contact with large flocks (≥ 1001 birds) and associated with uptake of at least one footwear‐related PPE measure (independent of flock size). Perceived risk of AIV to respondents' own health was low, regardless of the number of birds a respondent had daily contact with. Conclusions: Our results indicate that routinely used BMs are implemented to limit AIV spread among birds, but not with the purpose of limiting zoonotic transmission from birds to humans. Identifying cohort characteristics which could lead to low BM uptake, alongside barriers and facilitators to BM uptake, is important for informing zoonotic AIV public health campaigns.

Introduction: Recent intercontinental spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) among kept and wild birds, and transmission to mammalian hosts, including cattle and humans, has heightened the need to review public health risk assessments. Biosecurity measures (BMs) are essential for limiting disease spread, but how widely different practices are implemented is not fully known. Methods: Here, we report on the uptake of BMs and risk perception of avian influenza virus (AIV) in the context of preventing zoonotic transmission to persons potentially at high risk of exposure. Questionnaire data from 225 people in contact with birds in the UK (Avian Contact Study, May to July 2024) were analysed. Results: We found hand washing after contact with birds was the most common BM implemented (89%, 196 of 218), followed by using disinfecting footwear dips (78%, 170 of 218). Individuals in contact with a higher number of birds were more likely to use at least one personal protective equipment (PPE) measure for the face or body or at least one footwear- related PPE measure. Perceived risk of AIV to bird health was high for individuals in contact with large flocks (≥1001 birds) and associated with uptake of at least one footwear-related PPE measure (independent of flock size). Perceived risk of AIV to respondents’ own health was low, regardless of the number of birds a respondent had daily contact with. Conclusions: Our results indicate that routinely used BMs are implemented to limit AIV spread among birds, but not with the purpose of limiting zoonotic transmission from birds to humans. Identifying cohort characteristics which could lead to low BM uptake, alongside barriers and facilitators to BM uptake is important for informing zoonotic AIV public health campaigns.