14 - We put a jar on a stick and the internet went wild

Abstract: This presentation will detail how Franklin County Public Health came up with their idea for tick check stations in parks, implementation, and initial reception when a local acarologist posted on Twitter about the stations. Public health agencies and researchers reached out from across the country to enquire about our revolutionary idea to attach a jar to a stick to collect ticks. These tick check stations meet three objectives: 1. Prevent park visitors from relocating ticks from wild habitat to playground/picnic areas while removing them from their dogs, 2. Serve as a targeted, timely outreach and education tool where people are most likely to encounter ticks, 3. Provide passive surveillance data to our agency. We will review lessons learned from this pilot program, share surveillance results, and provide tips to anyone who may be interested in implementing this low-cost tool in their area. Bonus content: cute dogs, amateur craftsmanship and tick pics.