INSTRUCTIONS TO RESEARCHER, LECTURER AND STAFF
All research, teaching and testing and activities based on laboratory animal conducted at the SPH must receive the approval from the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC).
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
1. All researchers, lecturers and staff are required to log out each time dealing at the SPH.
2. All researchers, lecturers and staff are required to wear PPE such face mask, rubber glove, lab coat/scrub suit during animal handling.
3. All researchers, lecturers and staff are required to wear a covered shoes during animal handling or when in the laboratory.
4. Children below 12 years old are prohibited from entering the SPH research area.
5. All researchers, lecturers and staff are required to attend to the animal under their care daily to detect for any sickness and to report any abnormalities to the veterinarian for further action.
6. Research animal is not allowed to be transported from one room to another or to any laboratories inside or outside of the institution without permission and its where about needs to be recorded.
7. All researchers, lecturers and staff are required to change the bedding in the cage according to the schedule to ensure that the animal is in a clean and dry environment.
8. All researchers, lecturers and staff must ensure that all laboratories and lab animal room are clean, neat and tidy at all times.
9. In case of a sudden animal death, the veterinarian officer in charged should be notified for post-mortem and sample extraction. Delayed post-mortem can cause autolysis thus deter further testing.
10. All researchers, lecturers and staff have to take care of their self hygiene by washing their hand thoroughly after handling the animal or laboratory equipment.
11. Food and drinks are not allowed in the laboratories and at the animal shelter.
12. Smoking is prohibited.
13. In case of accident during animal handling, immediately report to supervisor/attending veterinarian and seek medical treatment at the emergency unit HUSM (Health Campus) or at the Emergency Unit, USM Sejahtera Centre (Main Campus) or at the IPPT (Bertam Campus). The Occupational Safety and Health Unit needs to be informed as well.
SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS
1. Application for animal must be handed in 3 months before the required date.
2. Animal provision will only be provided after the researcher and lecturer have obtained the approval from Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC).
3. Application to house research animal at SPH has to be handed in at least a month before the required date.
4. Modern technological research equipments placed at the SPH must be recorded and the usage status must be dictated in the log book.
5. Researcher and academician must feed their research animal on their own daily. If the experiment procedure involves feeding restriction, please place the "NO FEEDING/ DRINKING" label.
6. The wellness and welfare of the animal is the responsibility of the researcher, lecturer and staff during the period of research, teaching and testing. It must be adhere to the rules and regulation, act and policies of laboratory animal care.
7. Reusing of the animal after the project would require a written approval from Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) with clear stated justification.
8. Researchers, lecturers and staff have to adhere to the regulation on the number of animal in a cage according to species and cage space.