Perception of Veterinarians towards 'DIAREX-K'-- A Need Based Expert System for Dairy Cattle Disease Diagnosis

The objectives of the study on which this paper is based, were to develop an IT [Information Technology] based expert system on dairy cattle diseases for Continuing Veterinary Education (CVE) of veterinarians and to assess its effectiveness. The veterinarians working in three districts under the Animal Husbandry Department, Kerala were the respondents of the study. The research was conducted in three phases. A needs analysis was conducted to prioritize the dairy cattle diseases based on which the content was developed. Concerned experts validated the content of different dairy cattle diseases before being incorporated into the software tools. The perceived applicability of the expert system 'DIAREX-K' was assessed using a stratified proportionate random sampling to identify participants who then completed a structured questionnaire. The majority of the respondents rated the expert system as highly satisfactory and indicated a favorable attitude toward computer usage. Simplicity and design aspects of the system received top ranking. The findings indicate that it is essential for the organization to take the initiative and motivate the veterinary professionals to use computer-assisted aids such as the expert system as a CVE program to improve their clinical and diagnostic practices.