Make a WHIS

Despite our small size, at VIEW we are fortunate to rely on an exceptional team of insightful and committed professionals who are utilizing cutting-edge resources that we have developed to affect profound and meaningful change to animals throughout the world.

Currently, we are conducting research throughout the Greater Yellowstone Region and the Northern Rocky Mountain States to assess wildlife health in several species and enter data into our Wildlife Health Information System (WHIS), a groundbreaking new digital medical records database. The most recent initiative is focused on collecting samples and compiling information on prominent animal species throughout the Pacific Northwest, including details regarding the proximate cause of death, prevailing health conditions, and the presence of any diseases in the animals. Information within this digital platform is stored securely, so it will always be accessible and unaffected by changes in location, infrastructure, or vagaries of environmental conditions. Once the data is entered into the system, it is logged and indexed, categorized, and stored for easy retrieval at any time.

Justin Kaiser, one of VIEW’s dedicated wildlife veterinarians, is working diligently to gather and input the results of his field research. He sees WHIS as a transformative resource for wildlife surveillance. “Simple information organization is a huge hindrance to effective wildlife health surveillance,” says Justin. “With every new profile we create, WHIS grows and becomes a more effective wildlife conservation tool. WHIS is an effective way to accumulate large amounts of wildlife health data in a single searchable database that it has the potential to play a key role in conservation efforts around the world.”

The accessibility of collated information, the retrievability of the data, and the collaboration with wildlife health professionals in varied locations ensure WHIS’s viability as a digital platform and its potential to create a library of knowledge that connects wildlife health professionals around the world. We are proud of the work that veterinarians like Justin are doing to aid in this significant project that will ensure the interconnectedness of information while transforming the landscape of wildlife conservation.