It's all about competency

Persons working with laboratory animals should always be trained and competent in order to ensure animal welfare, optimal implementation of the 3R’s and scientific quality of animal experiments.

Until they have demonstrated the required competency, they can only perform these tasks under supervision of a competent person.

The Animal Welfare Body (AWB) of the Animal Research Facility (in Dutch: Centraal Dierenlaboratorium (CDL)) of Radboudumc has developed a system that governs training in and assessment of competency in execution of animal procedures, and includes the concept of Continuing Professional Development (CPD). The system is in line with the EU directive and guidance documents on CPD.

Advice and support
Qualified and competent
Get certified
Register
Access to CDL
Get iVentionLES account
Training and assessment
Project license
Apply
Protocol
Write protocol
Schedule planning meeting
Request for animal products
Surplus animals
Amendment
Amendment
Closure
Evaluate

Advice and support

Process of animal experimentation

This timeline offers a guide to the process of animal experimentation to staff of Radboud University or Radboudumc. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please feel free to contact us.

Animal Welfare Body (AWB)

The AWB acts on behalf of the Radboud University to oversee legal supervision of the performance of animal experiments and the welfare of laboratory animals, in accordance with the Animal Experimentation Act. The AWB is available via email and several contact persons.

read more

Animal Welfare Body (AWB)

The Animal Welfare Body (AWB) (Instantie voor Dierenwelzijn IvD) helps to ensure a responsible animal experimentation policy within Radboud University and Radboudumc. The AWB acts on behalf of  the Radboud University to oversee legal supervision of the performance of animal experiments and the welfare of laboratory animals, in accordance with the Animal Experimentation Act.

Organizationally, the AWB falls under the Animal Research Facility (CDL). The AWB is composed of animal welfare officers, bio-technicians, and one or more scientists. If necessary, the group is supplemented by a veterinarian, statistician, or other specialists.

Additional information can be found below the contact information.

Contact

Email
instantievoordierenwelzijn@radboudumc.nl
Secretary AWB
Janny Verstegen-Gröning: +31 (0)24 361 35 00
Contact persons
Jeannette Lorteije: +31 (0)24 309 74 95
Miriam Kool: +31 (0)24 309 23 64
Alinde Wallinga: +31 (0)24 304 1059
Anke Schoenmakers: +31 (0)24 309 89 37

Additional information

Any institution that performs experiments on animals, or breeds or supplies animals for experiments, is required by the provisions of the 'Wet op de dierproeven' to set up such a body. We conduct our TASKS primarily for Radboud University and Radboudumc, and also for a few other educational and research institutions.

Optimal welfare for animals 
Our goal is to ensure that the optimal welfare of laboratory animals is an integral part of the structure of the Radboud University and Radboudumc. Of key importance is the optimal use of alternatives and proper and responsible research within the legal frameworks and with extra attention paid to replacement, reduction and refinement (3Rs).

Collaboration at all levels
In order to achieve these goals, we work closely together with researchers, research technicians, animal caretakers, managers and directors of Radboud University and Radboudumc. Together we maintain a ‘culture of care’.

Tasks
The Animal Welfare Body has a large number of tasks that we conduct on behalf of Radboud University and Radboudumc. These tasks are largely prescribed by law in accordance with the provisions of the Experiments on Animals Act. These tasks deal with issues such as animal welfare, alternatives to animal experiments, procedures, registration, supervision and communication with the Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD). The most important of these tasks include:
Animal welfare and alternatives

  • offering advice on animal welfare during acquisition, accommodation, care and utilisation of animals
  • offering advice on replacement, reduction and refinement (3Rs)
  • providing information about technical and scientific developments
  • establishing and testing procedures for monitoring and reporting on animal welfare
  • providing information and advice on the rehousing scheme and the appropriate socialisation of the animals

Procedures

  • discussing a project proposal with the applicant prior to applying for a project licence from the Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD)
  • consulting with the researcher prior to the conduct of an animal experiment
  • working with the researcher to determine whether changes in the project must be submitted to the CCD

Registration and supervision

  • collecting registration data on animals and experiments
  • monitoring the welfare of laboratory animals
  • supervising the registration and evaluation of authorizations, expertise and skills of those working with laboratory animals

Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD)

  • providing information for retrospective evaluation
  • reporting cases when a project is conducted differently than specified in the licence
  • reviewing the non-technical summary
  • all other correspondence with the CCD

And more…

  • developing internal policy
  • communicating about animal experiments (policy)
  • contributing to training and education
  • acting as the first point of contact in the event of problems or potential problems pertaining to animal welfare 
  • encourage cooperation and collaboration between researchers and animal caretakers
  • acting as the first point of contact for inspectors from the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA)

Contact

  • The Animal Welfare Body (AWB) is available via e-mail and several contact persons.

    see page


  • Proces related help

    Helpdesk
    Email: helpdesk.cdl@radboudumc.nl
    T: +31 (0)24 361 35 00

    Contact persons
    Dorien van de Pol: +31 (0)24 361 93 80            
    Christien Frederiks: +31 (0)24 36 13500

Technology center Animal Research Facility

This timeline is part of RTC Animal Research Facility.

see page

Qualified and competent

Get certified


Certification

The law requires that those involved in experiments on animals must be qualified. The successful candidate of the LAS course will get a FELASA accredited certificate. read more

Certification

The law requires that those involved in experiments on animals must be qualified. The successful candidate of the LAS course will get a FELASA accredited certificate of the Radboud University and will be registered in the European FELASA database.

The LAS course has been accredited by the Federation of European Laboratory Animal Science Associations (FELASA). FELASA represents common interests in the furtherance of all aspects of laboratory animal science (LAS) in Europe and beyond. The FELASA accreditation program follows the requirements stated in article 23 of the EU Directive 2010/63  and the EC Guidelines (European Commission, 2014) and is recognized as the premier accreditation scheme in Europe for LAS courses.

Laboratory Animal Science course (LAS) art. 9

This course is designed to train participants in accordance with the requirements of Article 9 of the Experiments on Animals Act. The course includes all relevant topics related to the design of ethically, legally and scientifically appropriate animal experiments.

see page

Need more info? Contact us

drs. Miriam Kool MSc
LAS course coordinator

contact form

Register


Registration of persons involved in animal experiments

The law requires that those involved in experiments on animals must be registered at the Animal Welfare Body.

visit website

Access to CDL


Access to the CDL

Several steps must be taken to gain access to the CDL. read more

Access to the CDL

To gain access to the CDL, all registered students, art. 9 persons, art. 13f2 persons and guest researchers must follow the online 'Welcome to the CDL' workshop. In this workshop, you get to know about routing and procedures for animal experiments, the digital welfare logbook and the CDL house rules. The workshop is concluded with an assignment, to be handed in with, and checked by, the AWB. After passing the workshop assignment, you may make an appointment to visit the CDL unit at which you will work. After the tour your personal access badge will be activated.

For all questions regarding the workshop, contact the AWB at contact the AWB via e-mail.

Important information for researchers that do not have a Radboudumc Z-number
If you are not a Radboudumc employee or student (no Z-number), a PNIL contract needs to be made for you before you can receive your access badge. Please contact the CDL front office to take care of this, simultaneously with your registration with the AWB.

Summary of the steps to be taken to gain access to the CDL


Workshop Welcome to the CDL

After registration with the AWB, all students, art. 9 persons, art. 13f2 persons and guest researchers will receive an invitation to the 'Welcome to the CDL' workshop. This workshop is obligatory to gain access to the CDL. read more

Workshop Welcome to the CDL

Invitation to the workshop

After registration with the AWB, all students, art. 9 persons, art. 13f2 persons and guest researchers will receive an invitation to the online 'Welcome to the CDL' workshop with login data and instructions. The workshop can be followed at your own time of choice, either from home or from work. Following the workshop and passing the assignment is obligatory to gain access to the CDL. Only after passing the workshop assignment, your personal access badge will be activated.

Contents of the workshop

The workshop is organized by the AWB and contains:

  1. Information on all process steps involved in setting up and performing an animal experiments at the CDL
  2. Video instructions on how to work with our online laboratory execution system iVentionLES
  3. A case study in which an animal experiment is followed from writing a project license proposal to the welfare evaluation after the experiment. This case study will be concluded with an assignment, including actions to be performed in iVentionLES, questions about the process and exemplary situations in which to decide the best course of action. The assignment is to be handed in to the AWB. All the information you need for passing the assignment is contained in the online study materials.
  4. Information about the CDL house rules.

Tour of the CDL unit and activation of access badge

After passing the workshop assignment, you may make an appointment with the CDL coordinator of the unit where you will perform your experiments. They will give you a short tour of the unit. During the tour any unit-specific house rules will be explained to you and you can make an appointment to work with the animal caretakers for one morning or afternoon. During this session, you can get familiar with the way animals and cages are handled in the CDL. At the end of the tour, your personal access badge will be activated, allowing you access to the unit.

For all questions regarding the workshop, contact the AWB via e-mail.

Get iVentionLES account


iVentionLES

iVentionLES is the laboratory execution system for animal experimentation. It supports the entire cycle of a research project: from the research question involving animal experiments to the implementation of these experiments and the registration of the research results. read more

iVentionLES

iVentionLES is the laboratory execution system (LES) for animal experimentation used at Radboudumc and Radboud University. The system supports the entire cycle of a research project: from the research question involving animal experiments to the implementation of these experiments and the registration of the research results. In addition, financial data, invoicing information and management data is generated as output.
 
iVentionLES is a modular system. Each module is released separately.

Authorization

Every researcher registered at the Animal Welfare Body of the Radboudumc can get access to iVentionLES. Please send the request for an account to the helpdesk of the Radboud Animal Research Facility (in Dutch: Centrale Dierenlab).

Log in

> go to log in IVentionLES

Contact

Helpdesk
Email: helpdesk.cdl@radboudumc.nl
T: +31 (0)24 361 35 00
Contact persons
Dorien van de Pol: +31 (0)24 361 93 80            
Christien Frederiks: +31 (0)24 36 13500

Ask for an account

All persons registered at the Animal Welfare Body of Nijmegen will automatically get an iVentionLES account. Please contact the helpdesk of the RTC Animal Research Facility when your registration is approved but you didn’t receive details on your account for iVentionLES.


Contact The iVentionLES team

The team is available via email and several contact persons. read more

Contact The iVentionLES team

Helpdesk
Email: helpdesk.cdl@radboudumc.nl
T: +31 (0)24 361 35 00
Contact persons
Dorien van de Pol: +31 (0)24 361 93 80            
Christien Frederiks: +31 (0)24 36 13500

Training and assessment


It's all about competency

Persons working with laboratory animals should always be trained and competent in order to ensure animal welfare, optimal implementation of the 3R’s and scientific quality of animal experiments.

read more

Procedure

View the procedure and corresponding documents on training and assessment.

visit website

Project license

Apply


Applying for a project licence

Researchers who wish to begin a research or education project that involves experiments on animals are required to apply for a license from the Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD). Please follow the phases using our infographic. read more

Applying for a project licence



Elements

The application for a project licence consists of:

  • the project proposal
  • a non-technical summary (NTS)
  • the description of animal procedures

Advice

The Animal Welfare Body offers advice and support during the entire process of drafting and writing of a project in iVentionLES and applying for the project licence at the Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD). The AWB is available via email and several contact persons.

read more

Advice

The Animal Welfare Body offers advice and support during the entire process of drafting and writing of a project in iVentionLES and applying for the project licence at the Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD).

Contact

Email
instantievoordierenwelzijn@radboudumc.nl
Secretary AWB
Janny Verstegen-Gröning
Contact persons
Pieter Verbost (Mo., Tu. & We.): +31 (0)24 309 23 69
Roel Sneepers (Th. & Fr.): +31 (0)24 309 23 68
Miriam Kool (Mo., Tu. & Th.): +31 (0)24 309 23 64


Process flow

View the summary regarding the project application. read more

Process flow


Application forms

All forms are available in iVentionLES.

visit website

Protocol

Write protocol


Procedure forms

The protocol describes the details of an animal experiment and the actions to be taken by those performing an animal experiment. The protocol form and information on the procedure is available in iVentionLES.

visit website

Process flow

View the summary for the protocol submission.

read more

Process flow

Schedule planning meeting


Start-up meeting

After approval of the protocol by the Animal Welfare Body, a meeting with the Animal Research Facility contact person(s) needs to be scheduled. This is to discuss and plan the details of the execution of the experiment (who does what).

Request for animal products


Use of animal products and biological material

In order to optimize the use of surplus animals, you may file a request for particular animals or tissues up front. Requirements can be indicated using this form. You will then be approached when animals will be euthanized from which the requested tissues can be isolated. You can isolate organs yourself at the specified time or ask the CDL colleagues to do so.

visit website

Animal Welfare Body (AWB)

The AWB acts on behalf of the Radboud University to oversee legal supervision of the performance of animal experiments and the welfare of laboratory animals, in accordance with the Animal Experimentation Act. The AWB is available via email and several contact persons.

read more

Animal Welfare Body (AWB)

The Animal Welfare Body (AWB) (Instantie voor Dierenwelzijn IvD) helps to ensure a responsible animal experimentation policy within Radboud University and Radboudumc. The AWB acts on behalf of  the Radboud University to oversee legal supervision of the performance of animal experiments and the welfare of laboratory animals, in accordance with the Animal Experimentation Act.

Organizationally, the AWB falls under the Animal Research Facility (CDL). The AWB is composed of animal welfare officers, bio-technicians, and one or more scientists. If necessary, the group is supplemented by a veterinarian, statistician, or other specialists.

Additional information can be found below the contact information.

Contact

Email
instantievoordierenwelzijn@radboudumc.nl
Secretary AWB
Janny Verstegen-Gröning: +31 (0)24 361 35 00
Contact persons
Jeannette Lorteije: +31 (0)24 309 74 95
Miriam Kool: +31 (0)24 309 23 64
Alinde Wallinga: +31 (0)24 304 1059
Anke Schoenmakers: +31 (0)24 309 89 37

Additional information

Any institution that performs experiments on animals, or breeds or supplies animals for experiments, is required by the provisions of the 'Wet op de dierproeven' to set up such a body. We conduct our TASKS primarily for Radboud University and Radboudumc, and also for a few other educational and research institutions.

Optimal welfare for animals 
Our goal is to ensure that the optimal welfare of laboratory animals is an integral part of the structure of the Radboud University and Radboudumc. Of key importance is the optimal use of alternatives and proper and responsible research within the legal frameworks and with extra attention paid to replacement, reduction and refinement (3Rs).

Collaboration at all levels
In order to achieve these goals, we work closely together with researchers, research technicians, animal caretakers, managers and directors of Radboud University and Radboudumc. Together we maintain a ‘culture of care’.

Tasks
The Animal Welfare Body has a large number of tasks that we conduct on behalf of Radboud University and Radboudumc. These tasks are largely prescribed by law in accordance with the provisions of the Experiments on Animals Act. These tasks deal with issues such as animal welfare, alternatives to animal experiments, procedures, registration, supervision and communication with the Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD). The most important of these tasks include:
Animal welfare and alternatives

  • offering advice on animal welfare during acquisition, accommodation, care and utilisation of animals
  • offering advice on replacement, reduction and refinement (3Rs)
  • providing information about technical and scientific developments
  • establishing and testing procedures for monitoring and reporting on animal welfare
  • providing information and advice on the rehousing scheme and the appropriate socialisation of the animals

Procedures

  • discussing a project proposal with the applicant prior to applying for a project licence from the Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD)
  • consulting with the researcher prior to the conduct of an animal experiment
  • working with the researcher to determine whether changes in the project must be submitted to the CCD

Registration and supervision

  • collecting registration data on animals and experiments
  • monitoring the welfare of laboratory animals
  • supervising the registration and evaluation of authorizations, expertise and skills of those working with laboratory animals

Central Authority for Scientific Procedures on Animals (CCD)

  • providing information for retrospective evaluation
  • reporting cases when a project is conducted differently than specified in the licence
  • reviewing the non-technical summary
  • all other correspondence with the CCD

And more…

  • developing internal policy
  • communicating about animal experiments (policy)
  • contributing to training and education
  • acting as the first point of contact in the event of problems or potential problems pertaining to animal welfare 
  • encourage cooperation and collaboration between researchers and animal caretakers
  • acting as the first point of contact for inspectors from the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA)

Surplus animals


Animal and Tissue Exchange platform

The Animal and Tissue Exchange platform (ATEX) intends to contribute to better use of surplus animals, organs and tissues by making supply and demand visible.
Check next link for instructions on the use of ATEX.

visit website

Amendment

Amendment


Process flow

View the summary regarding the amendments.

read more

Process flow

Closure

Evaluate


Procedure after the study

If you have completed an animal experiment or a series of animal experiments, your work is not yet done.

read more

Procedure after the study

If you have completed an animal experiment or a series of animal experiments, your work is not yet done.

Welfare Evaluation

After finishing each Work Protocol, you, being the researcher, fill in an evaluation form in iVentionLES.

ARRIVE

You may be working on a publication. To make animal experiments understandable for others on a detailed level, it is best to use the ARRIVE-guidelines when writing your article. 

Statement

Do you need a statement for your article, stating that the animal experiments have been issued a licence and were conducted in accordance with legal standards, then we can provide it. Let us know (instantievoordierenwelzijn@radboudumc.nl

Publication bias

To prevent publication bias, it is important that you make any results public, even if they are disappointing. Even if your experiment has failed, others can learn from your description of what went wrong, which will prevent them from making the same mistake. This is important in any research, but even more in animal experiments. If you haven't registered your research yet on www.preclinicaltrials.eu, you can still do so.


Technology center Animal Research Facility

This timeline is part of RTC Animal Research Facility.

see page