As linked modules, Laboratory Animals (LA) and Animal Facilities Management (AFM) currently share information in a one way (LA to AFM) transfer of protocol information upon Approval of the protocol as a whole. Part of the information transferred relates to protocol-approved procedures, which are available to be recorded animals or enclosures on their associated protocol.
These are generally scientific procedures, i.e., modified diet, surgical procedures or euthanasia, as opposed to relatively common husbandry procedures such as changing food, cleaning cages, or checking water levels. While scientific procedures are cannot be altered, any procedures that are marked as “Husbandry” in the AFM admin setups can be recorded against animals and enclosures. A Workflow setup controls access to add husbandry procedures; this access should be given to facility staff who are either going to perform these procedures, or staff involved in planning their use.
These husbandry procedures are recorded just like protocol procedures, and include relevant dates such as ordered date, due date, and completed date, along with person creating, and person performing the procedure and general comments. An admin level Procedures/Services tab displays all created procedures and their status. This information is available through the reporting tool for later analysis. Queries by PI, protocol, or animal, can be utilized to track what has been done with the animals on a particular protocol, or to examine the use of equipment or areas, such as anesthetic machine or surgical suite utilization.
