How to Pass the ACUC Inspection - theunissenlab/lab-documentation GitHub Wiki

  1. Email the lab and enlist everyone's help. Even if you don't work with animals you should help, it's crucial for the lab!

  2. Organize and clean everything, tidy up and make sure all spaces are presentable. (NAF 123D and E, 125, 131, histology room, and LKS). Clean all glassware and surgical tools. We haven't had a field station inspection yet.

  3. Sweep and mop the floors. Scrub the counters. Replace the white counter covers with fresh ones.

  4. Anything with an expiration date must be current, if it's expired throw it out (surgical supplies as well as animal food and supplements). Don't forget to order more. This goes for bird seed as well.

  5. Cleaning records must be up to date (sweeping, mopping, cleaning solution expiration dates). Pretty much every room in NAF has cleaning records posted by the door.

  6. NPD must be made fresh- as of 11/2020 OLAC is supplying a freshly made carboy of NPD at the bottom of the stairs in NAF. All you have to do is fill a spray bottle and update the date on it. And then spray stuff with it, of course. NPD is Quaternary ammonium, so NEVER EVER mix it with bleach.

  7. Training Records must be up to date. This includes the training records associated with our AUP, the Chemical Hygiene book, and the BUA. TODO: Write exactly where these are all located.

  8. Rooms and cages must be clean.

  9. Cages must have appropriate cage cards.

  10. Surgical records and old cage cards should be organized and filled out. Our surgical records are just a stack of all the blue surgical cage cards, kept in a drawer in 131. Make sure to collect any cards you find and put them there.

  11. Autoclave surgical instruments (this should be done on a regular basis but inspections are a good excuse to do it anyway).

  12. They don't like tape in animal rooms (can't be sterilized), and they don't like cardboard in animal rooms (can't be sterilized), so get rid of any excess tape and cardboard.

  13. They don't like heavy things above the surgical area, so look for heavy things that could potentially fall on the animal and relocate if appropriate.

  14. It feels like there is often some new thing they care about each year, read the email they send carefully.

The ACUC email on Nov 19, 2020 listed these items

Here’s a general list of things that the ACUC will look at during our visit:

  1. A copy of the most current IACUC Protocol
  2. Cleanliness of animal work areas and equipment (i.e. Behavioral set-ups, anesthesia/euthanasia chambers, scales used to weigh animals, etc)
  3. Documentation of post-op monitoring and recovery for survival procedures (if applicable to your lab)
  4. Accuracy of controlled substance logs (if applicable to your lab)
  5. Agents/solutions used in animals (expiration dates, proper labeling, etc)
  6. Storage of animal food and labeling (if applicable to your lab)
  7. Training documentation