DATE: February 9, 2017
TIME: 12:00pm PT, 3:00pm ET

The presentation will develop the FELASA (Federation of the European Laboratory Animal Science Association) views on education and training in an international setting, more specifically in Europe. Since 1995, date of the first publication on education of people involved in animal experimentation, FELASA has been dealing with this issue on one hand by introducing a taxonomy of roles in animal experimentation, the so-called FELASA categories A, B, C & D and on the other hand by proposing an accreditation scheme to ensure high quality education. 

With the introduction of the European Directive 2010/63/EU on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes, it is mandatory that any person working with animals in a scientific set-up has to be educated and trained beforehand. We will briefly explain how the FELASA accreditation process adapts to the new regulatory landscape. 

To the contrary to education, continuing professional development (CPD) is for many European countries not a legal requirement. However, FELASA has given some guidance on this crucial component of the acquisition and maintenance of competences of persons involved in animal experimentation. Guidance on how a CPD scheme could be introduced will be developed on the basis of seven principles. An example will be given with Switzerland which has made CPD mandatory  for any person working in animal experimentation, from animal care takers to members of regional ethical boards.

Learning Objectives:

• To be able to describe the European education and training system and to understand how the FELASA education and training accreditation process works 
• To acquire some knowledge of what are the basic ingredients for implementing a CPD scheme in an institution