Not many children would tell you that they want to be an IRB administrator when they grow up—to this day, not many people, my family included, truly understand what my job entails. In the general population there is a lot of skepticism and misinformation about what it means to be involved in research; I want to be part of a future which changes that. Read more
I had pondered my role on the 2018 IACUC Conference Blog Squad multiple times in the days leading up to the event and throughout the three days of the meeting. My musings, and a conversation with my niece about the work we do, led me to one of those extraordinary “Aha!” moments. Read more
I have been an IACUC Administrator for fifteen years and a long-time member of PRIM&R. I can remember my first PRIM&R IACUC Conference back in 2005: all the excitement and anticipation of learning new ideas and best practices. From time to time I’m asked why I still go to PRIM&R IACUC if I've already gone before. And my reply is, because it’s always exciting and new! Like regulatory compliance itself, the conferences always offer new knowledge to be gained, new friends to meet, and exciting adventures to be had. Read more
The keynote address at PRIM&R's IACUC Conference by Alison Rockett Frase and Dr. Martin (Casey) K. Childers really should have come with a Kleenex alert! Those of us in attendance all know that research with animals can lead to major advances in treatment for a variety of health issues. Hearing Ms. Frase’s firsthand account of her son's battle with a rare neuromuscular disorder and Dr. Childer’s follow-up description of their search for a treatment or cure for centronuclear and myotubular myopathies was truly inspiring. If you’ve not yet seen the video about their journey please stop what you are doing, close your office door, grab a hankie and watch their video. I dare say there were very few dry eyes in the room at the end of their presentation at IACUC18, and there was a communal feeling of wanting to shout: “Yes, Yes, Yes! This is why we do what we do!” Read more
Do you think of customer service when you think of IACUC Administration? No? Well, maybe you should! I recently attended a fabulous session at PRIM&R’s 2018 IACUC Conference entitled “Incorporating Quality Customer Service into IACUC Administration”. We don’t often think of customer service as applying to regulatory compliance. But if instead of viewing regulatory compliance as enforcement, we view it as a service, we may begin to see compliance increase. Read more
