TickEncounter Resource Center Mission Statement:

The TickEncounter Resource Center promotes tick-bite protection and tick-borne disease prevention by engaging, educating, and empowering people to take action.

The Challenge

For over 2 decades, Rhode Island consistently has ranked 2nd to Connecticut in per capita incidence of tick-transmitted disease. Over this time, tick-borne disease has continued to increase in numbers and severity. To decrease tick-borne disease from Rhode Island and other parts of the U.S., we clearly need new strategies for prevention, including effective tools to prevent tick bites, to prevent pathogen transmission, for diagnosis, and for treatment.

Before recent advancements in science and technology, the thought of eliminating tick-borne illness from Rhode Island was a seemingly unachievable task, since even suppressing disease incidence rates seemed out of grasp. However, breakthroughs in current research along with growing successes in community outreach give us hope that eliminating tick-borne illness is now a realistic and attainable goal.

While the statistics are daunting, we are optimistic because we know that this problem can be solved. More importantly, we have come to realize that it is not enough simply to be aware of the problem; to make a difference, every one of us must take action .

The Solution

For over 10 years, URI's Center for Vector-Borne Disease has been committed to tackling Rhode Island's growing tick epidemic. In 2006, the Center launched a comprehensive initiative devoted to making swift progress in creating and implementing strategies to "drive tick-borne disease out of Rhode Island." To accomplish this, CVBD will be integrating its existing programs in basic research with new outreach programs, to highlight the need for applying a wide variety of "tools" to achieve disease prevention. Goals of this effort include:

Creating effective new vaccines and therapeutics to prevent tick-bites and disease transmission
Providing effective strategies for health information delivery and action plan decision support
Developing and promoting community-based tick control strategies to lower tick abundance and pathogen infection rates
Improving reliability in diagnosis and treatment

Do you believe in our mission? Become a TickEncounter Prevention Partner!

Partner with TickEncounter Resource Center to prevent tick bites and tick-borne disease in your community.

There are more ticks in more places than ever before, and this is increasing the public health impact of tick transmitted disease. That's a problem!! There's never been a greater need for tick bite protection and tick-borne disease prevention.

Whatever your business, whatever your organization, many of your customers, clients, patients or visitors likely live in communities where they face the prospect of encountering disease-carrying ticks. Lyme disease, babesiosis, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tick paralysis. When they encounter a tick, people want and need ready access to information and health promotion tools that help support appropriate tick bite protection actions. Thats where you can help!!

TickEncounter Prevention Partners (TEPPs) help us engage, educate, and empower people to take appropriate actions to prevent tick bites and the often-serious diseases ticks transmit. They are committed to improving the health of the communities and the people they serve.

Community organizations, schools, local businesses, non-profits, environmental groups, clubs, associations, hospitals and clinics, cities and towns, states, even federal agencies all have a stake in public health, and all can become part of solving the tick problem.

The TickEncounter Resource Center is ready to work in tandem with our prevention partners, to maximize the reach and impact of the most effective tick bite protection and disease-prevention strategies.