Animal Care Committee
Approved ACC Policy
Training New ACC Members
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Animal Care Committee
Approved ACC Policy |
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The Animal Welfare Act, Animal Welfare Regulations, and PHS Policy require institutions to provide training for all personnel appointed to the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) at an institution. The UCHC IACUC, known as the Animal Care Committee, is charged with ensuring that all personnel who are appointed to the ACC are adequately trained.
1. All new individuals who are being considered for an appointment to the ACC will meet with the ACC Chair, coordinator, and the Institutional Official. This meeting will cover topics including, but not limited to, the following: the function of the ACC, logistical aspects of appointment (meeting dates, times, location, etc.), and the responsibilities of the member related to the committee position they will hold (e.g., scientific member, community member, etc.).
2. If the individual agrees to an oral invitation to the committee by the Institutional Official, an appointment letter will be sent to them by the Executive Vice President for Health Affairs.
3. Once the individual is appointed, they will meet with the ACC coordinator. In this discussion, the new committee member will be introduced to the federal and state laws and regulations which govern the use of laboratory animals as well as institutional policies and procedures.
4. The new committee member will be given a copy of the following:
● The ACC Member Handbook
● The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals
● Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. This document includes the
Health Research Extension Act of 1985 and the U.S. Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training
● Animal Welfare Act and Animal Welfare Regulations
● Animal Care (USDA) Policies
● AVMA Panel on Euthanasia Guidelines
● Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee Guidebook
5. The new committee member will be required to complete two training modules through ResearchTraining.org. These include "Working with the IACUC" and "Essentials for IACUC Members". The new committee member will be required to pass the examinations associated with these training modules.
6. The new committee member will be required to review the Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW), NIH tutorial located at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/olaw/tutorial/index.htm.
7. In order to satisfy requirements of the Department of Defense, new community members of the IACUC will complete a minimum of 8 hours of training to include a minimum of 4 hours of instruction on regulations and protocol review and a minimum of 4 hours on the concepts of humane animal care and the ethics of animal use. This may be accomplished by any combination of the following:
● Meetings with the ACC coordinator and/or chair
● On-line training modules and tutorials
● Attendance at sponsored training courses (e.g., IACUC 101)
● Attendance at national meetings (e.g., PRIM&R IACUC conference)
8. The new committee member will be trained on how to access InfoEd and access the ACC shared folder, if required, by the ACC coordinator.
9. The ACC office will be responsible for documenting all training activities of ACC members at the Health Center.
Effective Dates: July 27, 2006 through July 26, 2009
This policy has been approved by a majority vote of the Animal Care Committee
Members
Joseph Lorenzo, M.D., Chair, Animal Care Committee