Evaluation of public health advice and guidance for open farms and farm attractions in England

<p>Introduction While visiting open farms and farm attractions is a valuable experience for the public, exposure to the farm environment and farm animals can increase the risk of infection. Although public health advice is available for both farms and farm visitors, the extent to which this advice is understood and implemented is unclear. Method An ethnographic approach was adopted to explore understanding and adherence to public health advice and guidance from the perspectives of key stakeholders. This included on-site observations on open farms and farm attractions in North-West England, informal conversations with farm staff and visitors, formal focus groups with key stakeholders and analysis of relevant documents identified during data collection. Data was analysed using a qualitative inductive framework approach. ResultsThree key themes were identified that informed public health practices: (i) the influence of the farm environment (e.g., the layout and behaviour of others) (ii) perceptions of risk and (iii) the way in which public and professional stakeholders engaged with and understood public health advice and guidance. ConclusionsOur findings outline important considerations for the development and dissemination of public health advice and guidance for open farms and farm attractions, with recommendations related to both the content of guidance and approaches to dissemination. Key recommendations include emphasising the importance of all site visitors engaging in protective behaviours and optimising the design and layout of farm environments to support engagement with public health measures. Future work should explore the development and evaluation of interventions and public health campaigns to support stakeholders to engage with this guidance.</p>