OLAW
This NIH office oversees institutional compliance with the PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.
What is OLAW.
OLAW provides federal oversight of institutions with PHS Assurances and expects IACUCs to follow PHS Policy requirements.
This federal policy applies to institutions receiving Public Health Service support for activities involving live vertebrate animals.
What is the PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals?
IACUCs at PHS-funded institutions must ensure animal activities comply with PHS Policy.
This primary reference sets standards for humane care, housing, veterinary care, and program management for laboratory animals.
What is The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals?
PHS Policy requires institutions to use The Guide as a basis for their animal care and use programs.
This program protects personnel from risks associated with animal contact, including allergies, bites, zoonoses, and hazardous agents.
What is an occupational health and safety program?
The IACUC must ensure animal activities include appropriate protections for personnel.
These guidelines are the primary professional standard used to evaluate humane methods of animal euthanasia.
What are the AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals?
The IACUC uses the AVMA Guidelines to review and approve euthanasia methods in animal protocols.
Institutions receiving PHS funding must have this document approved by OLAW, describing their animal care and use program.
What is an animal welfare assurance?
The IACUC operates under the institution’s Assurance, which describes how the institution meets PHS Policy standards.
Under PHS Policy, the IACUC must review and approve these before animal work can begin.
What are animal use protocols?
Protocol review is one of the IACUC’s core responsibilities.
The Guide describes this as a concept involving the animal’s physical, behavioral, and psychological well-being.
What is animal well-being?
The IACUC considers animal well-being when reviewing housing, enrichment, procedures, and endpoints.
These are diseases that can be transmitted between animals and humans.
What are zoonotic diseases?
The IACUC reviews protocols for zoonotic risks and confirms appropriate safety measures are in place.
AVMA classifies euthanasia methods into acceptable, acceptable with conditions, and this category.
What is unacceptable?
The IACUC must not approve unacceptable methods unless extraordinary justification and regulatory allowance exist.
OLAW requires prompt reporting of serious or continuing noncompliance, serious deviations from the Guide, and these IACUC actions.
What are IACUC suspensions of animal activities?
If the IACUC suspends an activity, the institution must report the suspension to OLAW through the Institutional Official.
PHS Policy requires the IACUC to inspect animal facilities and evaluate the animal care and use program at least this often.
What is semiannually?
The IACUC must conduct semiannual program reviews and facility inspections.
The Guide expects institutions to have this professional available to provide medical care and oversight for research animals.
Who is the attending veterinarian?
The IACUC works closely with the attending veterinarian to ensure adequate veterinary care and humane endpoints.
Animal dander, urine proteins, and bedding dust are common causes of this occupational health issue in animal facilities.
What are laboratory animal allergies?
The IACUC should ensure risks are addressed through PPE, engineering controls, training, and medical surveillance.
This principle requires that euthanasia minimize pain, distress, anxiety, and fear before loss of consciousness.
What is humane euthanasia?
The IACUC evaluates whether the method, setting, equipment, and personnel training support humane death.
This individual signs the institution’s Assurance and has authority to commit institutional resources to the animal care and use program.
Who is the Institutional Official?
The IACUC reports program concerns, evaluations, and recommendations to the Institutional Official.
PHS Policy requires animal activity proposals to include rationale, species and number of animals, procedures, pain/distress minimization, and this final disposition method when applicable.
What is euthanasia?
The IACUC must evaluate whether proposed euthanasia methods are appropriate and consistent with AVMA Guidelines unless scientifically justified.
This approach allows institutions to meet animal care standards through outcomes-based methods rather than rigid engineering standards.
What is a performance standards-based approach?
The IACUC may approve departures from The Guide only when they are scientifically justified and documented.
This safety practice may include gloves, gowns, masks, respirators, eye protection, or other barriers based on risk assessment.
What is personal protective equipment, or PPE?
The IACUC reviews whether proposed PPE and safety practices match the hazards in the animal protocol.
After euthanasia, personnel must verify this using appropriate species-specific criteria.
What is confirmation of death?
The IACUC should ensure protocols describe appropriate confirmation of death methods.
OLAW may require corrective action plans after noncompliance, but this local committee first identifies, reviews, and addresses many animal welfare concerns.
What is the IACUC?
The IACUC is the institution’s primary oversight body for animal activities, including review, monitoring, and corrective actions.
This set of principles, incorporated into PHS Policy, emphasizes appropriate animal use, minimization of pain and distress, and consideration of alternatives.
What are the U.S. Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training?
The IACUC uses these principles to evaluate whether animal use is ethical, justified, and humane.
These scheduled IACUC activities assess animal housing areas, procedure spaces, surgical areas, and the overall animal care and use program.
What are semiannual program reviews and facility inspections?
The Guide informs what the IACUC looks for during inspections and program evaluation.
Before animal work begins, personnel should receive training and may be enrolled in this process used to evaluate individual health risks.
What is medical surveillance or occupational health enrollment?
The IACUC verifies that personnel are appropriately trained and included in occupational health programs when required.
When investigators propose a method inconsistent with AVMA Guidelines, the IACUC must require this type of explanation.
What is scientific justification?
The IACUC may approve deviations only when justified for scientific reasons and consistent with applicable policy.