IAT May Newsletter

May Newsletter

We would once again like to acknowledge the fantastic work you are all doing out there, we don’t just mean the technicians, we also include all our food, bedding, enrichment, chemical & equipment suppliers, delivery drivers, manufacturers, breeders, service engineers and anyone else we have forgotten!

We are delighted that the UK government have confirmed (now in line with others) the inclusion of animal care staff and related industries and their families in the list of those who can currently get tested for coronavirus, should they develop symptoms. This is a welcome announcement and will allow some a sense of security as we are starting to develop ‘safe return and resume policies’ which will be logistically complex.

New Membership Database Launched

If you are a member and haven’t received this notice, can we recommend you have a look in your email junk folder! This new database will allow members to share as much – or as little – personal information about themselves as they wish, you can log your education and CPD and it is hoped that this will help members to get in contact with each other, network and share information.

mySociety Database

IAT Council May 2020

On Wednesday 13th the IAT Council will be holding its May meeting via Zoom for the very first time.

NC3Rs Upcoming 3Rs Webinars

E-learning modules on anaesthesia, euthanasia and pain and distress assessment – how can they help in the delivery of training?

Wednesday 13 May
11:00 - 11:45 (BST)

This webinar will focus on FLAIRE Learning's three new NC3Rs-funded modules on advanced anaesthesia, as well as further resources and the benefits of e-learning for laboratory animal professionals. Professor Paul Flecknell (FLAIRE Learning) will speak from 11am to 11.30am, after which he will take questions. The target audience is anyone involved in training and laboratory animal anaesthesia.

NC3Rs Webinar

AST2020 Notice

With the AST2020 conference now a distant memory in these difficult times, the Directors of IAT and the Trustees of LASA, the two main associations organising AST2020, felt you should know what has been happening since the 17th March, when it became clear that the event was no longer viable.

First and foremost, we have been working relentlessly to unravel the financial consequences. We are currently taking legal advice on the complex contractual and financial arrangements with the aim of recovering these funds. We will endeavour to keep you informed, however it may take a long time to resolve especially in the current climate.

We fully understand and share your concerns and frustration; we ask you please to bear with us while we continue these difficult negotiations.

Thank you for your patience – LASA & IAT

Experimental Surgery in Rodent Survey

A Survey has been launched if you’d like to get involved:

The survey is part of two consecutive surveys on experimental surgery in rodents. The aim is to understand the challenges and pitfalls all of us encounter every day during rodent surgeries. Your input will help to improve experimental surgery - thus reducing not only unnecessary suffering of animals, but also facilitating the generation of reproducible and reliable research data. Based on the outcome of these surveys, the outlook is to set up training resources and e-learning modules on topics revolving around rodent surgery.

These surveys are part of a PhD thesis and the results are planned to be presented by the end of the year. After the completion of this survey, you will have the chance to be notified about the follow-up survey addressing more rodent surgery specific topics and also to participate in a lottery to win a prize. The completion of the survey will take about 10 - 15 minutes. All data will be handled confidentially and will not be given to any other party.

Link to Survey

If you have friends that are not getting this newsletter and you think they would like to, please pass this on to them and they can register following the link below.

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