A self-assessment survey of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, Part 1: animal welfare and protocol compliance

Nearly half of all external grants from the US National Institutes of Health require approval by the recipient organization's Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) before the funds can be used for research with animals. Given that large sums of money are spent annually on research involving animals, studies evaluating the strengths, weaknesses and overall effectiveness of IACUCs and similar animal welfare committees are needed. The authors designed and carried out a self-assessment survey on IACUC function and effectiveness. They found that 98% of all respondents believed that their IACUCs advanced animal welfare, but in many instances, veterinarians' responses to individual survey items were significantly different from those of other IACUC members. Protocol compliance, protocol review training and better understanding among non-committee members of the need for regulatory oversight are some areas where improvements could be made. Less than 50% of respondents stated that literature searches to find alternatives to animal use or painful or distressful procedures were helpful.     

Animal abuse in Massachusetts: a summary of case reports at the MSPCA and attitudes of Massachusetts veterinarians

This article reports information abstracted from 200 randomly sampled animal abuse complaints that the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals received in 1996, along with the results of 1 10 surveys that Massachusetts veterinarians completed concerning their experience with and attitudes and perceptions of animal mistreatment. In 1996, there were a total of 4,942 complaints of animal mistreatment, or 2.2 complaints per 1,000 households in Massachusetts. The majority of sampled complaints involved dogs (69.5%), cats (21.5%), or both. Almost all complaints involved husbandry-related neglect (62.0%), medical neglect (26.0%), or both. A violation of the law was observed by the investigating officer in 75 (37.5%) cases. The majority (78.9%) of veterinarians reported having observed at least 1 instance of animal abuse in their patients, although few encountered more than 5 cases (16.4%) during their years of practice. Almost all respondents (93.6%) agreed that veterinarians have an ethical responsibility to report suspicions of abuse, but a smaller number (44.5%) believed that this responsibility should be mandated.     

Physicians' perceptions of the effect on clinical services of an alternative funding plan at an academic health sciences centre

BACKGROUND: In July 1994 an alternative funding plan for clinical services (global funding instead of fee-for-service payment) was established at the Southeastern Ontario Health Sciences Centre, Kingston, Ont. This study describes the perceptions of the referring physicians and consultants of the effects of the alternative funding plan 2.5 years after it was initiated. METHODS: A questionnaire was mailed to all physicians in the Kingston area in November 1996. Information was collected on demographics, referring physicians'' perceptions of the funding plan''s impact on their practices, consultants'' perceptions of its impact on their activities, perceptions of referring and consultant physicians of its impact on services provided by consultants, and attitudes toward alternative funding in the context of the Ontario health care system. RESULTS: Of the 772 physicians 531 (68.8%) returned a completed questionnaire (323 referring physicians and 208 consultants). A sizeable proportion of the referring physicians (126 [39.0%]) indicated that they were referring fewer patients to consultants at the study centre. They did not think that their practice volume had increased, but they did report spending more time on complex cases and on patient care after referral or hospital stay, and more time coordinating community care after hospital stay. Of the consultants 81 (38.9%) believed that their time spent on patient care had increased. No consistent impact on time spent on research or teaching activities was perceived. A total of 54 (26.0%) of the consultants were concerned about the impact of the alternative funding plan on quality of care. A significant proportion of the respondents (399 [75.1%]) believed that outpatient waiting times had increased, and 116 (35.9%) of the referring physicians believed that consultants were not as available by telephone. Most (220 [68.1%]) of the referring physicians believed that the funding change had had a negative effect on health care services in the region, and 87 (41.8%) of the consultants agreed. Nevertheless, the respondents believed that other factors such as funding cuts, hospital bed closures and staff layoffs were much more responsible than the alternative funding plan for their negative perceptions. INTERPRETATION: The alternative funding plan appears to have had an impact on the practices of individual physicians. However, it was not the focus for significant opposition or support from either consultants participating in the funding plan or referring physicians.     

Psychiatrists' attitudes regarding genetic testing and patient safeguards: a preliminary study

AIMS: A probability sample of U.S. psychiatrists (n = 93) was invited to complete a mail survey regarding the likely impact of genetic testing on psychiatry; the clinical utility of pharmacogenetic, diagnostic, and susceptibility genetic testing; and 14 proposed ethical and legal safeguards for clinical genetic testing. RESULTS: Forty-five psychiatrists participated in the survey (response rate = 48%). The majority (80% and 60%, respectively) believed that genetic testing would benefit many psychiatric patients and would dramatically change the way psychiatry is practiced. Many psychiatrists (73-85%) also stated that pharmacogenetic, diagnostic, and susceptibility tests for common psychiatric disorders would be somewhat useful or extremely useful in the clinical setting. Nearly all (98-100%) believed that psychiatrists should obtain informed consent before genetic testing, should keep test results confidential, should provide pre- and posttest counseling, and should demonstrate competence in interpreting test results. Nearly all (96-100%) supported laws and regulations to prevent discrimination based on genetic test results and to protect consumers from misleading advertisements for testing. Ninety-one percent endorsed restrictions on the sale of genetic tests directly to consumers. CONCLUSIONS: This probability sample of U.S. psychiatrists expressed a strongly positive view of genetic testing in psychiatry, while voicing nearly unanimous support for seven ethical and legal safeguards.     

Animal Protection Measures in Taiwan: Taiwanese Attitudes Toward the Animal Protection Law and Animal Shelters

This study used a questionnaire, self-administered by 387 Taiwanese citizens, to assess Taiwanese perception and knowledge of the Animal Protection Law and perception and use of animal shelters. Most respondents (87%) knew that Taiwan has legal protection for animals. A –5 to 5 summary score measured knowledge of companion animal dog-related legal requirements. The median score was 3, indicating that almost all respondents had inadequate knowledge about these requirements. Although more dog caregivers had adequate knowledge of the law than did nondog caregivers (prevalence ratio = 1.9, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 3.2), only 19% had adequate knowledge. Although most respondents (81%) knew Taiwan has animal shelters, only 19 (5%) reported visiting or participating in shelter activities. Only 6 (32%) of shelter visitors or users had a "good or better" impression of services received. Despite low usage of animal shelters, most respondents thought shelters should accept (87%) and relocate (90%) unwanted animals, capture strays (64%), assist in finding lost pets (79%), and educate the public about responsible ownership (85%). More than half (52%) thought shelters should perform euthanasia.     

Knowledge,Attitudes and Perceptions of Saudis towards Participating in Clinical Trials

Aim

To assess the knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions of Saudis towards participating in clinical trials (CTs).

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted on 232 Saudi adult patients and their companions visiting adult outpatient clinics at King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire based on information obtained from the literature. The questionnaire was divided into four sections, one covering the respondents’ demographics, and the other three assessing knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions towards participating in CTs.

Results

A total of 148 (63.8%) respondents were males, and 52 (22.4%) participants had been invited to participate in a CT previously. Of those, 39 (75%) participated. Knowledge about the essential elements of informed consent ranged from 55.7% (number of participants needed) to 85.7% (confidentiality of personal information). The majority (163, 73.8%) of respondents was willing to participate in a CT after consulting their family physician and 130 (58.0%) respondents would be motivated to participate in a CT if they were healthy. Only 36.8% of the respondents believed that patients who participated in a CT received the best care. Moreover, 110 (48.7%) respondents believed that research was conducted in a responsible and ethical manner.

Conclusions

The present study assessed the current understanding of CTs among Saudi participants. Although the majority of participants had an acceptable level of knowledge about CTs, they exhibited conditional attitudes and misperceptions towards participating in a CT. Increased patient awareness may improve patients’ attitudes towards ethical conduct of CTs.     

Animal protection measures in Taiwan: Taiwanese attitudes toward the animal protection law and animal shelters

This study used a questionnaire, self-administered by 387 Taiwanese citizens, to assess Taiwanese perception and knowledge of the Animal Protection Law and perception and use of animal shelters. Most respondents (87%) knew that Taiwan has legal protection for animals. A -5 to 5 summary score measured knowledge of companion animal dog-related legal requirements. The median score was 3, indicating that almost all respondents had inadequate knowledge about these requirements. Although more dog caregivers had adequate knowledge of the law than did nondog caregivers (prevalence ratio = 1.9, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 3.2), only 19% had adequate knowledge. Although most respondents (81%) knew Taiwan has animal shelters, only 19 (5%) reported visiting or participating in shelter activities. Only 6 (32%) of shelter visitors or users had a “good or better ”impression of services received. Despite low usage of animal shelters, most respondents thought shelters should accept (87%) and relocate (90%) unwanted animals, capture strays (64%), assist in finding lost pets (79%), and educate the public about responsible ownership (85%). More than half (52%) thought shelters should perform euthanasia.     

Human–Animal Bonds Between Zoo Professionals and the Animals in Their Care

Some human‐animal relationships can be so positive that they confer emotional well‐being to both partners and can thus be viewed as bonds. In this study, 130 delegates at zoo research and training events completed questionnaires in which they were asked about their professional work in the zoo and whether they believed they had established bonds with any animals. They were also asked to indicate agreement or disagreement with several statements about human‐animal bonds. Results showed that many zoo professionals consider that they have established bonds with some of their animals; 103 respondents believed that they had a bond with at least one animal, and 78 of these identified that the bond was with a zoo animal. The most frequent bonds reported were with primates (n = 24) and carnivores (n = 28). Perceived benefits of these bonds to the respondents included both operational (animal easier to handle, easier to administer treatments to) and affective (sense of well‐being, enjoyment at being with the animal). Identifying benefits to the animals was more difficult. Most respondents identified similar benefits for their animals as for themselves, i.e. operational (animal responded more calmly, appeared less stressed) and affective (animal appeared to enjoy contact with respondent, seemed more content). This suggests that bonding between zoo professionals and their animals could have profound consequences for the management and welfare of the animals, not to mention the job satisfaction of the people involved. Zoo Biol 31:13;–26, 2012. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Cervical cytology quality assurance in Washington State.

The objectives of this study were to establish a profile of cervical cytology laboratories in Washington State, identify quality assurance problems amenable to correction through education or legislation, and describe differences between large and small cytology laboratories. All 43 Washington laboratories that perform cervical cytology were surveyed by mail during 1989. Completed surveys were returned by 37 (86%) of the laboratories. Nearly half (43%) of the respondents reported processing less than 10,000 Papanicolaou smears annually. Only one-third (35%) of the respondents reported participating in relevant proficiency programs. A proportion of smaller cytology laboratories were compensating their cytotechnologists on the basis of the number of slides read and allowing Papanicolaou smears to be read outside the confines of the laboratory. The results of this study suggest that cytotechnologists in some larger Washington laboratories have been exceeding work load limits recommended by professional associations. Recent legislation includes regulations that address cervical cytology quality assurance. However, continued efforts will need to be made to encourage voluntary adoption of quality control measures not addressed by this legislation.     

Moral Convictions and Culling Animals: A Survey in the Netherlands

ABSTRACT

In this paper the results are presented of a national survey in the Netherlands. The aim was to identify and describe the convictions about animals that people have in Dutch society and the role of these in judgments on the culling of healthy animals during an animal disease epidemic. A total of 1,999 responses was received and two groups of respondents were distinguished: A profile (50% of the respondents) and B profile (28%). The A profile respondents considered humans to be superior to animals, whereas the B profile respondents considered both to be equal. Both groups were of the opinion that animals have value, that people have a duty to care for and protect all animals, and that all animals have a right to life. These convictions were based on a number of values, such as animal life, the ability of animals to feel pain and emotions (sentience), and the importance of animal species in the ecosystem. The results of a case study suggest that convictions play a role in judgment. More A respondents agreed with the culling of healthy animals during an animal disease epidemic. More B respondents partly (dis)agreed or disagreed with this. Most respondents (A: 81%, B: 61%) agreed with culling to protect human life. The most important argument against culling was the value of animal life. The A respondents rated all arguments against culling significantly lower than did the B respondents.     

Species richness and the proportion of predatory animal species in temporary freshwater pools: relationships with habitat size and permanence

The proportion of predatory animal species is often believed not to vary systematically across communities. However, we predict that larger temporary freshwater pools, and pools that are more permanent, will contain a higher proportion of predatory animal species. In 24 temporary rockpools in Northern Israel (supporting communities dominated by ostracods, copepods, cladocerans, flatworms, dipterans and amphibians), the mean proportion of macroscopic predatory species (averaged over a series of samples) increased with increasing pool area. For the highest possible proportion of predatory species (including microscopic species with uncertain diets), the relationship with pool area was not statistically significant. We did not find significant relationships between permanence and the proportion of either macroscopic or all possible predatory species. Larger pools and pools that were more permanent had more species. Species richness and the proportion of macroscopic predators were positively correlated. These patterns imply that species-poor ecosystems are likely to be functionally different from species-rich systems.     

Assessment of the ethical review process in Sudan

The ethical review process is an important component of contemporary health research worldwide. Sudan started an ethical review process rather late in comparison with other countries. In this study, we evaluate the structure and functions of existing ethics review committees. We also explore the knowledge and attitudes of Sudanese researchers toward the ethical review process and their experience with existing ethics review committees. There are four ethics review committees in the country; these committees have no institutional regulations to govern their functions. Furthermore, Sudan also lacks national guidelines. Ethical reviews are carried out primarily for studies seeking international funding and are almost always governed by the funding agencies' requirements. Nearly half of respondents (46.3%) knew about the existence of research ethics committees in Sudan. Researchers reported a variety of experiences with the ethical review process; most of them were unable to define 'ethics committee'.     

A study of three IACUCs and their views of scientific merit and alternatives

Two ethical issues facing Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees [IACUCs] today are assessing scientific merit and the use of alternatives in research proposals. This study evaluated 3 IACUCs using a 19-question survey, with a 77.8% response rate. Although 76% of members answered that scientific merit should be more dili-gently assessed if more than slight pain is caused, 14% believed that assessing scien-tific merit is not the role of the IACUC. Nearly 86% agreed that the search for alterna-tives should be more diligent for protocols that incur more than slight pain to the animals involved. Some members believed that alternatives were not actively enough sought after, while others believed no viable alternatives existed. Additional guide-lines are needed to clarify these issues.     

Feeding of wildlife: How effective are the ‘Keep Wildlife Wild’ signs in Tasmania's National Parks?

Summary   We investigated attitudes of the visiting public to feeding wildlife and the effectiveness of the 'Keep Wildlife Wild' signs in Tasmania's National Parks. We surveyed visitors to three visitor nodes in two National Parks for their opinions regarding the feeding of wildlife. Participants were asked whether they had seen a 'Keep Wildlife Wild' sign, and the role played by the sign in determining their opinions. A total of 118 visitors were interviewed. The majority of respondents (92.2%) were against feeding wildlife. Only 3.5% of respondents were in favour of feeding wildlife, while 4.3% had no opinion on the subject. The most commonly cited reason against feeding wildlife was that it caused harm to the animal. The majority of respondents (69.6%) had sighted a 'Keep Wildlife Wild' sign posted in Tasmania's National Parks since 1996, 84.6% of which said that the sign had reinforced a pre-existing opinion against feeding. Only 3.9% of respondents who had seen the sign said that the sign had formed their opinion against feeding. We also observed a total of 68 people interacting with wildlife while they were eating lunch. A total of 70 interactions between visitors ( n  = 68) and wildlife were recorded. Thirty-seven (52.9%) of these interactions involved feeding an animal, although this feeding activity was carried out by only five people (7.4% of total). Numerous examples of inadvertent feeding were also observed in which Black Currawongs ( Strepera fuliginosa ) scavenged for food scraps once visitors had left.     

Ethical issues concerning animal research outside the laboratory

Unique ethical issues can be associated with research outside the customary laboratory setting. Protocols involving wild animals must consider that any infringement on the wild nature of the species can be disruptive and may involve pain, fear, anxiety, and frustration, all of which constitute ethical harm that must be balanced with anticipated benefit. Agricultural and companion animal research, however, take place in a human-engineered environment and involves domesticated species adapted to human contact. Special animal welfare issues can be related to agricultural production goals that fail to deal adequately with moral concerns. Human/companion animal relationships, on the other hand, present unique moral obligations to animal owners. Other factors may present additional ethical issues when research is performed outside the laboratory. These factors include a required sensitivity to the environment of wild animals and an awareness that this outside research may to quite public and, therefore, vulnerable to community perception. The institutional animal care and use committee(IACUC) has the responsibility to ensure that research in outside settings is ethical and properly implemented. This responsibility requires that IACUC members have knowledge of the needs of a wide range of species and that a process is in place to allow effective monitoring of research in remote locations. Finally, and most important, there must be a sensitivity to the unique ethical considerations outlined here. Armed with these strengths, the IACUC will be effective in what may be unfamiliar surroundings and will have a significant opportunity to cause improvements in animal welfare.     

The question of animal immortality: changing attitudes

Abstract

Christian teaching has long held that only humans possess an immortal soul and it is commonly thought that this has had the effect of downgrading animal status. One item in each of two separate questionnaires investigated current attitudes to human and animal immortality. The first Survey (A), consisted of a 21-section questionnaire which focussed on the changing status of animals across three family-related generations. One hundred and one students, one of their parents and one of their grandparents were asked whether they believed in an afterlife for (a) humans and (b) all animals or (c) some animals (n = 303). The second survey (B) was a separate enquiry. It was sent both to principals of Christian ministerial courses (n = 22) and to those running university departments of philosophy. An extra item, asked of ministerial courses only, enquired what was the current teaching as to whether animals had the possibility of a life beyond this. Both questionnaires found that attitudes to animal immortality are changing.     

A survey of UK public interest in internet-based personal genome testing

Background

In view of the increasing availability of commercial internet-based Personal Genome Testing (PGT), this study aimed to explore the reasons why people would consider taking such a test and how they would use the genetic risk information provided.

Methodology/Principal Findings

A self-completion questionnaire assessing public awareness and interest in PGT and motivational reasons for undergoing PGT was completed by 4,050 unselected adult volunteers from the UK-based TwinsUK register, aged 17 to 91 (response rate 62%). Only 13% of respondents were aware of the existence of PGT. After reading a brief summary about PGT, one in twenty participants (5%) were potentially interested at current prices (£250), however this proportion rose to half (50%) if the test was free of charge. Nearly all respondents who were interested in free PGT reported they would take the test to encourage them to adopt a healthier lifestyle if found to be at high genetic risk of a disease (93%). Around 4 in 5 respondents would have the test to convey genetic risk information to their children and a similar proportion felt that having a PGT would enable their doctor to monitor their health more closely. A TwinsUK research focus group also indicated that consumers would consult their GP to help interpret results of PGT.

Conclusions/Significance

This hypothetical study suggests that increasing publicity and decreasing costs of PGT may lead to increased uptake, driven in part by the general public''s desire to monitor and improve their health. Although the future extent of the clinical utility of PGT is currently unknown, it is crucial that consumers are well informed about the current limitations of PGT. Our results suggest that health professionals will inevitably be required to respond to individuals who have undergone PGT. This has implications for health service providers regarding both cost and time.     

A Survey of Chinese Citizens’ Perceptions on Farm Animal Welfare

Farm animal welfare has been gradually recognized as an important issue in most parts of the world. In China, domestic animals were traditionally raised in backyard and treated as an important component of family wealth. Industrialization of animal production brings forth the farm animal welfare concerns recently in China, yet the modern concept of animal welfare has not been publicized and a comprehensive recognition on how consumers and farmers perceive animal welfare is lacking. Therefore, we conducted a survey on public opinions toward farm animal welfare in China, based on pigs (including sows, piglets, and fattening pigs), domestic fowls (including layers and broilers) and their products. From 6,006 effective questionnaires approximately two thirds of the respondents had never heard of ‘animal welfare’; 72.9% of the respondents claimed that, for the sake of animal derived food safety, human beings should improve the rearing conditions for pigs and domestic fowls; 65.8% of the respondents totally or partly agreed on establishing laws to improve animal welfare; more than half of the respondents were willing, or to some extent willing, to pay more for high-welfare animal products, whereas 45.5% of the respondents were not willing or reluctant to pay more. In summary, farm animal welfare is still in its early stage of development and more efforts are needed to improve the public conception to animal welfare in the process of establishing farm animal welfare standards and legislations in China.     

Informed consent and collaborative research: perspectives from the developing world

Introduction: Informed consent has been recognized as an important component of research protocols and procedures of disclosure and consent in collaborative research have been criticized, as they may not be in keeping with cultural norms of developing countries. This study, which is part of a larger project funded by the United States National Bioethics Advisory Commission, explores the opinions of developing country researchers regarding informed consent in collaborative research. Methods: A survey of developing country researchers, involved in human subject research, was conducted by distributing a questionnaire with 169 questions, which included questions relating to informed consent. In addition, six focus group discussions, eight in-depth interviews and 78 responses to open-ended questions in the questionnaire provided qualitative data. Results: 203 surveys were considered complete and were included in the analysis. Written consent was not used by nearly 40% of the researchers in their most recent studies. A large proportion of respondents recommended that human subject regulations should allow more flexibility in ways of documenting informed consent. 84% of researchers agreed that a mechanism to measure understanding should be incorporated in research studies as part of the process of informed consent. Discussion: This paper is an empirical step in highlighting the ethical issues concerning disclosure. Health researchers in developing countries are well aware of the importance of consent in health research, and equally value the significance of educating human subjects regarding study protocols and associated risks and benefits. However, respondents emphasize the need for modifying ethical regulations in collaborative research.