Research Enterprise Newsletter - June 2009: Animal Care & Use News
IACUC to Monitor for Expired Medical Materials
The Institutional Animal Care & Use Committee (IACUC), at a recent convened meeting, approved the implementation of a new Expired Compounds Initiative. This program was developed to reduce, and ultimately eliminate, the discovery or use of expired materials in animal labs, which can jeopardize animal welfare, affect research study outcomes and result in University fines.
Effective immediately, Post-Approval Compliance Monitors with the Office of Animal Welfare Assurance (OAWA) will monitor USDA laboratories for expired medical materials and compounds, especially analgesics, anesthetics, euthanasia compounds and emergency drugs. Following a six-month grace period, rodent laboratories will also be monitored for expired materials. (A six-month grace period for USDA labs was just completed.)
If any expired analgesics, anesthetics, euthanasia compounds or emergency drugs are found, the Principal Investigator (PI) will be required to do the following:
- Maintain and submit a monthly Drug Inventory Report to the IACUC Committee for a one year period.
- Depending on individual circumstances, the IACUC may require lab personnel (including the PI) to attend an OAWA Expired Compounds training session.
If the PI neglects to submit a Monthly Drug Inventory Report to the IACUC, or if additional expired materials are found within this one-year time-frame, additional IACUC actions will be taken that may include protocol suspension. If a protocol is suspended, protocol reinstatement cannot occur until the IACUC reviews the facts at the next monthly convened meeting.
Please contact the OAWA office at 615-936-8163 for additional information. For assistance with training, contact Training Coordinator Tammy Jessen at 615-343-5338 or at tammy.jessen@vanderbilt.edu.
Process Amended for Protocols with Multiple Grants
The Office of Animal Welfare Assurance (OAWA), in conjunction with Grants and Contracts Management (GCM), has streamlined its process for Principal Investigators who must associate more than one protocol with a single grant.
The Investigator IACUC Protocol Affiliation form and the Fellowship/Trainee Assurance of IACUC Approval form can be found on the IACUC web site at https://www4.vanderbilt.edu/oor/iacuc/ within the Policies, SOPs & Forms tab.
Prior to sending the forms to Grants & Contracts Management, Principal Investigator (PI) must submit these forms to OAWA to obtain IACUC confirmation. OAWA will then return the signed form to the PI, who will submit the final paperwork to GCM.
For more information, contact Mimi Eckhard at 615-343-3591 or via mimi.a.eckhard@vanderbilt.edu.
