INSTITUTIONAL ANIMAL CARE AND USE COMMITTEE
Personnel and Training
The Supervisor’s Responsibility for Training
The following section of the US Animal Welfare Act obligates the IACUC to consider the training of personnel involved in animal-related work:
Sect. 2.31 Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees
(d) IACUC review of activities involving animals ...
(viii) Personnel conducting procedures on the species being maintained or studied will be appropriately qualified and trained in those procedures; (Federal Register, 54(168), 36152, August 31, 1989; see Section 2.32, 36153-4 for some details on what is meant by "appropriately qualified and trained")
Accordingly, (1) ESF faculty members involved in, or supervising, the care, handling, or treatment, of animals will be expected to assure the IACUC of satisfactory knowledge and/or training regarding the procedures to be employed. This will ordinarily occur as part of the protocol-review process by the provision of relevant biographical and background information in the application.
Furthermore, (2) a faculty member will be expected to provide in-person training, or personally verify the ability of, anyone else involved in such activities before the trainee is allowed to conduct such tasks in the absence of direct supervision. A written record should be kept specifying each training session, including the name of all persons involved and the nature and extent of their training, this record being kept available for inspection by the IACUC.
Online Training (Required)
All personnel on an animal care and use protocol should be familiar with the regulations and requirements pertaining to use of vertebrate animals in teaching and research. To facilitate and document this learning, ESF personnel have access to the CITI training program.
All personnel are required to complete the IACUC course for Investigators, Staff and Students, also called Working with the IACUC. This course covers the material from Chapters 1-3 of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, which is required reading for the certification of all ESF animal care protocols. Additional courses on specific animals may also be required.
For instructions on how to access the CITI website, please contact Christopher Whipps, IACUC Chair.
Animal Users Health and Safety Program
The ESF Animal Users Health and Safety Program (AUHSP) provides policy and procedures for individuals working with vertebrate animals. Hazards are associated with exposure to animals used in research and teaching, and may include, allergens, zoonoses, physical and chemical hazards.
The objectives of the program are to minimize the risks of injury and illness by controlling or eliminating recognized hazards associated with laboratory animal care facilities and related facility maintenance and to ensure compliance with the Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (PHS Policy).
Most typical personnel involved in handling animals will need to complete a Health Risk Assessment (HRA) as part of the requirements of the AUHSP. Common exceptions might be a faculty member who is overseeing the project but not handling animals, or students in a class doing very brief handling. Risk group categories are outlined in the program description below .
The SUNY ESF Animal Users Health and Safety Program
For personnel required to submit an HRA, this should be completed using the form below and submitted directly to the Occupational Health Physician as indicated on the form. Because this form may contain personal health information, it should not be submitted to the ESF IACUC directly, nor to your employer.
The specific work and health history will be evaluated by a physician and the employee will either be cleared for animal work, given recommendations to complete before animal work, or given specific requirements that need to be satisfied before animal work can begin.