Animal Experimentation Ethical Committees
Introduction
In all investigation whose experimental procedures are carried out with animals, it is necessary to guarantee and supervise the application of the three erres and the ethical balance. Therefore, in recent years, in universities various structures have been formed to meet this purpose, the Ethics Committees.
Developing
In Spain, legislation obliges all centers to constitute ethical animal experimentation committees. It requires every investigator to have a recognized training that allows him to be accredited as a competent authority. In addition, the facilities where the procedures are carried out must be officially registered and there must be an animal experimentation ethics committee that approves the experimental procedure. In addition, each Autonomous Community must develop the Royal Decree by orders, or apply what is published.
An ethical committee must be formed by:
- The Center’s Animal Welfare Specialist
- A representative of the Center Quality Guarantee Unit, when it exists, or a center investigator not directly involved in the procedure that must be evaluated
- Person with experience and knowledge of animal well -being that is not related to the center or with the procedure that is evaluated
The functions of the ethical committee are the following:
- Inform that each procedure is adequate in relation to the objectives of the study, analyze whether it is possible to achieve the conclusions with the least possible number of animals, consider alternative methods to the use of animals and if the selected species are adequate
- Advise on realojamiento or adoption of animals
- Inform about the realization of the procedures, indicating that means to avoid animal suffering, that the euthanasia method is adequate, and that the personnel who participate in the procedures have adequate training and accreditation
- Prepare an ethical committee report that accompanies the application authorization request
There is no central committee in each autonomous community, each institution has a different committee. In the pages of universities and research centers we can find the corresponding ethics committees, their composition, transparency, regulations. And also the procedures protocols for the application for authorization of projects, for the assessment of the procedure.
Each institution has its own procedure protocol, enabling direct communication with the researcher. But we find a big problem. If the committee of a center is very demanding and strict, researchers can choose to derive their work to another institution. In addition, another conflictive aspect is the presence of members related to the procedure in the committee, although the regulations prohibit it.
conclusion
The legislation is rigorous about it, but not enough. Autonomous institutions and communities should agree on the demands and procedures protocols. The members of the Committee and the projects most rigorously.
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