Background
US federal agencies have oversight responsibility for animals in biomedical research. Led by NIH, these agencies formed a public/private partnership, the Interagency Collaborative Animal Research Education (ICARE) Project offering active learning workshops to empower institutions to improve animal welfare, increase compliance with federal standards, and reduce self-imposed regulatory burden. In response to COVID-19, ICARE developed an online program ICARE Dialogues: Optimizing Animal Care and Use Programs in a Changing Environment to “care for the people who care for the animals.”
Hypotheses/Research Questions
Does the wellbeing of animal care personnel increase after participating in the ICARE Dialogues program – specifically sessions on managing teams in remote locations and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)?
Sample Characteristics and Sample Size
Participants included animal care and use personnel, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) members, animal program administrators and compliance personnel (n = 78).
Design
The quantitative study incorporated a survey to assess the changes in wellbeing from pre-to post-test, using the ICARE Dialogue program as the intervention.
Results
Cumulative results demonstrated that over a span of three months, personnel wellbeing improved as a result of ICARE Dialogue online sessions (pre-test M = 3.57, SD = .39, post-test M = 3.69, SD = .49, t = 2.67, p < .01).
Scientific Contribution
Moderated dialogues that identified key personnel challenges resulting from reduced staffing, burnout, and compassion fatigue were instrumental in developing new strategies to increase wellbeing as teams continue to address animal welfare during the pandemic. Caring for the people who care for the animals is necessary as a component of vaccine development. This session will engage the audience in a rich topical discussion based on ICARE Dialogue topics on strategies to reduce compassion fatigue and increase wellbeing in biomedical animal care and use personnel heavily impacted by the pandemic.