IACUC Institute: Improving Oversight of Animal Care and Use Programs Through Active Learning

Public Responsibility In Medicine And Research, Boston MA

Investigators

Abstract

Changes in federal regulations present challenges to Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees' (IACUCs) abilities to effectively meet their responsibility for the oversight of animal care and use programs at the nation's biomedical research institutions. Often IACUCs are unaware of new regulations or have a limited understanding of the extent of their authority---both of these factors can affect their institutional compliance with federal guidelines. Directed efforts to improve IACUC training are required so that all IACUC members are engaged, highly knowledgeable, and confident in their role in assuring compliance with animal welfare regulations. Public Responsibility in Medicine and Research (PRIM&R), an educational nonprofit organization, will develop the Train the Trainer IACUC Institute (TTII) in which a large cohort of national IACUC trainers will be trained to incorporate active and peer-directed learning in their educational activities. The specific activities of the TTII are to: 1) hold focused training sessions to teach existing IACUC trainers to practice effective instruction using active learning techniques that have been shown to increase knowledge transfer and to encourage IACUC trainers to incorporate these active and peer-directed learning methods into their own courses and educational sessions for IACUC members and staff; and 2) to develop and utilize meaningful metrics that enable assessment and improvement of IACUC training programs. The ultimate goal of the TTII is to improve oversight of animal care and use programs nationwide by ensuring that oversight activities by IACUCs accurately reflect current regulatory standards and equipping IACUC members and staff with the knowledge and confidence to reduce regulatory burden while maintaining compliance with federal laws and standards.