Quality Assurance Program
The Animal Care & Use Office’s Quality Assurance (QA) Team serves as a vital resource for the U-M research community. Every PI/Study Team receives two designated QA Specialists who can assist with all aspects of protocol management, provide support for resolving laboratory-specific concerns,
and offer guidance on answering compliance-related questions.
The Quality Assurance (QA) Team, created under the direction of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), strives to ensure that every aspect of the Animal Care & Use (ACU) Program can perform effectively and efficiently by identifying issues such as administrative and regulatory burden, duplicative processes, and misinformation.
Once identified, the QA Team will investigate the cause of common issues and propose solutions to ACU Program leadership. Typically, Quality Assurance Specialists identify these issues by visiting with members of the U-M research community.
A standard QA visit will provide research community members with the following:
- An open discussion of their individual concerns regarding the ACU Program;
- Discussions concerning the regulations, policies, and guidelines applicable to their research;
- Assistance in preparing for regulatory inspections;
- Identification and resolution of protocol deviations through education and/or protocol amendments;
- Amendment submission on behalf of the PI to increase clarity, flexibility, and consistency within the protocol; and/or
- Assistance in finding resolutions to difficulties specific to their laboratory.
Virtual QA Office Hours
The QA Team is typically available Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
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Additional services offered upon request include:
- Training and materials necessary to complete regular self-audits aimed at preventing noncompliance. Note: This is the number one way to prevent protocol noncompliance;
- Pre-review (prior to submission) of new protocols, protocol renewals, and amendments to facilitate a faster IACUC review;
- Presentations (for departments or individual laboratories) on regulations in animal research and how compliance facilitates research; and/or
- A comprehensive evaluation of laboratory practices.
The Quality Assurance Program is an ongoing resource to researchers at U-M, and Quality Assurance Specialists are available to assist with any questions or concerns related to the Animal Care & Use Program.
Questions?
Questions or consultation requests can be submitted via email to the QA team at ACUO-RCAs@umich.edu. Questions and requests may also be submitted to an individual Quality Assurance Specialist.