IBC News

On November 24, 2021, the USDA APHIS issued a final rule in response to the 21^st Century Cures Act for the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee at each facility to conduct a continuing review of research activities involving animals and review of such activities at least every three years. This change aligns with NIH OLAW timeline for completing a review. Therefore, the IACUC voted to eliminate annual reviews for approved protocols with the exception of studies funded by U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). This change is effective December 27, 2021.

In addition, the Institutional Biosafety Committee evaluated the annual review process and voted to eliminate submitting a form annually. In its place, an email notice will be sent requesting an annual protocol self-assessment to be performed to help determine if a protocol amendment is needed or changes to the study team. A list of items to review will be provided in the instructions of the notice. This change is effective January 13, 2022.

A renewal protocol is still required to be submitted. These changes do not affect the 3-year renewal process for IACUC protocols nor the 5-year renewal process for IBC protocols.

The Office of Research has launched a new online training to provide guidance for principal investigators and their staff. Being a Principal Investigator: Roles, Responsibilities and Resourcesis strongly recommended for principal investigators, but will benefit all members of the research community.

Course content explores the lifecycle of a sponsored project, covers research administration and compliance processes and provides access to many useful resources and tools.

To access the training:

1. Log in to http://buckeyelearn.osu.edu
2. Search for Being a Principal Investigator: Roles, Responsibilities and Resources to register
3. Click [Request], and select course from transcript to launch the training
4. The course takes approximately 45 minutes to complete

For more information contact Jeff Agnoli, senior staff training and development specialist for the Office of Research.

The University Laboratory Safety Committee’s Excellence in Safety awards recognize a university faculty or staff member, student and a laboratory research group who have made a considerable contribution to improving laboratory safety on the Ohio State campus. Such contributions can be defined as actions taken to prevent injury or illness, outstanding response and cooperation given to resolve unsafe conditions, consistent improvement during laboratory inspections, or any other consistent and proactive demonstration of efforts in support of a positive laboratory safety culture.

Environmental Health and Safety and the Office of Research coordinate the University Laboratory Safety Committee (ULSC). The ULSC works to enhance the safety culture at Ohio State by helping to shape safety programs, review and distribute new regulatory information and provide feedback from the university community regarding current laboratory safety incidents or issues.

Nominations for 2019 individual, group and student awards will be accepted through February 25, 2019.

Read more.

A new user-friendly web-based tool for conducting risk-based assessments – the Online Risk Assessment Tool (ORAT) is available as of November 1, 2017. The ORAT replaces the existing Occupational Health Registry. It is important to understand the potential risks associated with research or job-related duties – especially when there are potential risks due to contact with animals, hazardous agents, operations or environments. The ORAT employs a simple question and answer model that builds a personalized risk assessment designed to the specific hazards that may be encountered as part of work-related responsibilities.  More information is available on the IACUC Occupational Health Program webpage.