eptospirosis at berry farm case study

In May 2018, local doctors from the Hunter region of NSW reported an increased number of berry pickers presenting to hospital with a febrile illness in their local area. The people who are ill are farm workers. No cases have been identified outside this group of workers.

After much laboratory testing, four of the cases had leptospirosis detected via polymerase chain reaction (PCR) on blood specimens. All four cases were infected by the Arborea serovar of Leptospira; this serovar is found world-wide in rats and mice.

Initial interviews with cases revealed that all patients were raspberry workers from a single mixedberry farm. Many were recent migrants or backpackers on shortterm work visas. The farm is in a subtropical berrygrowing region and employs over 2,000 people during peak picking season. Raspberries are picked yearround, and blueberries are picked from June to January, with pickers paid by weight of fruit picked.

Submit a summary of your risk assessment for the Leptospirosis at berry farm case study (above). Make sure you include a summary of the hazard, exposure and context assessments, as well as the risk characterisation step. The level of risk for the outbreak and whether an outbreak investigation is needed should also be included.

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