scholarly journals Advancing animal welfare and ethics in veterinary practice through a national pet wellbeing task force, practice-based champions and clinical audit

2020 ◽  
Vol 187 (8) ◽  
pp. 316-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean Wensley ◽  
Vicki Betton ◽  
Nicola Martin ◽  
Emma Tipton
Keyword(s):  
Animal Welfare ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Task Force ◽  
Clinical Audit ◽  
Organisational Change ◽  
Safe Space ◽  
Targeted Interventions ◽  
Veterinary Practice ◽  
Practice Based Research ◽  
New Policies

BackgroundVeterinary animal welfare advocacy can be undertaken at individual, community, national and international levels. The People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA), a veterinary charity with 48 Pet Hospitals UK-wide, created a consultative staff network to put an explicit organisational focus on animal welfare–focused veterinary practice.MethodsPDSA created a national internal committee—a Pet Wellbeing Task Force—composed of veterinary staff representatives. Together with recruited hospital-based Champions who serve as a focus for animal welfare and ethics within their clinical teams, the resulting staff network has described a vision of animal welfare and ethics within companion animal veterinary practice, with accompanying practice-level actions. These actions have formed the basis for national clinical audit, repeated three times since 2013.ResultsThe audit, alongside targeted interventions, has driven organisational change (eg, new policies), led to measurable improvements in pet wellbeing (eg, improved pain assessment and management) and stimulated collaborative practice-based research with universities.ConclusionA dedicated staff network has facilitated organisation-wide communication on animal welfare and ethics; offered a safe space to raise and discuss animal welfare and ethical issues; and fostered leadership, by working towards model veterinary practice with respect to animal welfare and ethics, with benefits for pet patients, staff and the wider veterinary and veterinary nursing professions.

Ethical Issues Arising in Revising Classifications of Mental Disorders

2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (S1) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
N. Sartorius
Keyword(s):  
Mental Disorders ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Task Force ◽  
Psychiatric Patients ◽  
World Health ◽  
Sufficient Evidence ◽  
Advisory Group ◽  
Diagnostic Systems ◽  
The World

The classification of mental disorders in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) will be revised in the course of the next three years and its publication (as the 11th Revision of the ICD) will be published, after the approval of the World Health Assembly in 2014. In parallel, the American Psychiatric Association created a Task Force which has begun work on the proposals for the revision of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual which is to be published as the DSM 5th Revision, in 2012. The World Health Organization has established a special advisory group that should assist it in developing proposals for the classification of mental disorders for the 11th Revision of the ICD and this group collaborates closely with the APA Task Force creating the DSM5 proposals.Numerous ethical issues arise in this process and need to be discussed now so as to inform the process of agreeing on the proposals for the new classifications. They include the importance of an internationally accepted classification as a protection against abuses of psychiatric patients; the need to set the threshold for the diagnosis of a mental disorder at a level ensuring that people with such disorders receive help, the need to avoid imposition of diagnostic systems or categories without sufficient evidence and others. The presentation will briefly discuss the process of constructing the proposals for the new classifications and ways in which the groups established by the WHO and the APA handle these ethical questions.

scholarly journals Attitudes and Beliefs of Eastern European Consumers Towards Animal Welfare

Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1220 ◽  
Author(s):  
Igor Tomasevic ◽  
Ivan Bahelka ◽  
Jaroslav Čítek ◽  
Marjeta Čandek-Potokar ◽  
Ilija Djekić ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Animal Welfare ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Sociodemographic Characteristics ◽  
Attitudes And Beliefs ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Segmentation Analysis ◽  
Cross Country ◽  
Eastern European Countries ◽  
Beliefs And Attitudes

The aim of this exploratory work, because of the existing bias on the size of the sample and some of the sociodemographic characteristics of the participants, was to investigate the Eastern European consumers’ beliefs and attitudes toward animal welfare, to perform a cross-country segmentation analysis and to observe possible differences with their Western European counterparts. For this purpose, a survey was conducted with 5508 consumers from 13 Eastern European countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, North Macedonia, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine) using a questionnaire with nine statements about consumers beliefs regarding animal welfare (aspects of management, ethical issues about animals, and consequences of animal welfare on meat quality and price), one statement about the willingness to pay more for meat produced under better welfare conditions, and four statements regarding attitudes toward animal welfare. Differences between countries were detected for all the statements. Moreover, three clusters of consumers were identified: one with consumers indifferent towards animal welfare; one with consumers concerned about animal welfare, but they believe it is difficult to achieve; and one with consumers concerned about animal welfare, and they believe it is possible to achieve it.

The ethical basis of intensive livestock production systems

2001 ◽  
Vol 2001 ◽  
pp. 266-266
Author(s):  
G. Gatward
Keyword(s):  
Animal Welfare ◽  
Animal Rights ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Animal Rights Movement ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
The Impact

Many of the ethical issues regarding the livestock production systems of the late twentieth century have concentrated on the process of intensification. The extent of public disquiet at the welfare and ethical implications of intensification has been reflected in the burgeoning membership of animal welfare and animal rights organisations. The reasons for this increase as well as the impact that it has had on the livestock industry can be traced back to the 1960s, to factors such as the growing urbanisation of the population and especially the emergence of the animal rights movement which focused attention on a wide range of issues including the human exploitation of other animal species. This in turn led to a demarcation between those who supported the animal welfare cause and those who argued for animal rights.

Ethics of Digital Government

2011 ◽  
pp. 745-748
Author(s):  
N. Kapucu
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Private Information ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Public Access ◽  
Security And Privacy ◽  
Digital Government ◽  
And Migration ◽  
New Policies ◽  
Privacy And Confidentiality

The Internet is at once a new communications medium and a new locus for social organization on a global basis. A digital government will allow public access to government information and services, and group participation in discussions at any time and from anywhere on the globe. Digital government is regarded as the most recent development in the evolving application of electronic information technology to the performance of government. The development and migration of the technologies, as well as applications of information technology in support of government operations are other important aspects. New policies have been passed by legislative bodies to ensure the proper management and implementations of these technologies and the systems they serve, their protection from physical harm, and the security and privacy of their information. The growth of digital government has increased governments’ ability to collect, store, analyze, and disclose private personal and organizational information (Fountain, 2001). In the rapidly evolving environments of digital technology, it is impossible to anticipate the leading-edge ethical issues. However, there are solid ethical imperatives to use these principles ethical behavior for resolution of the issues (Anderson, 2004). This article will focus on privacy and confidentiality of individual private information in digital environment.

The ethical basis of intensive livestock production systems

2002 ◽  
Vol 2002 ◽  
pp. 245-245
Author(s):  
G. Gatward
Keyword(s):  
Animal Welfare ◽  
Animal Rights ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Animal Rights Movement ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
The Impact

Many of the ethical issues regarding the livestock production systems of the late twentieth century have concentrated on the process of intensification. The extent of public disquiet at the welfare and ethical implications of intensification has been reflected in the burgeoning membership of animal welfare and animal rights organisations. The reasons for this increase as well as the impact that it has had on the livestock industry can be traced back to the 1960s, to factors such as the growing urbanisation of the population and especially the emergence of the animal rights movement which focused attention on a wide range of issues including the human exploitation of other animal species. This in turn led to a demarcation between those who supported the animal welfare cause and those who argued for animal rights.

scholarly journals ‘Your country needs you’: the ethics of allocating staff to high-risk clinical roles in the management of patients with COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (7) ◽  
pp. 436-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Dunn ◽  
Mark Sheehan ◽  
Joshua Hordern ◽  
Helen Lynne Turnham ◽  
Dominic Wilkinson
Keyword(s):  
High Risk ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Health Service Delivery ◽  
Careful Consideration ◽  
Health Providers ◽  
Individual Health ◽  
Staff Allocation ◽  
The Face ◽  
New Policies ◽  
Ethical Tension

As the COVID-19 pandemic impacts on health service delivery, health providers are modifying care pathways and staffing models in ways that require health professionals to be reallocated to work in critical care settings. Many of the roles that staff are being allocated to in the intensive care unit and emergency department pose additional risks to themselves, and new policies for staff reallocation are causing distress and uncertainty to the professionals concerned. In this paper, we analyse a range of ethical issues associated with changes to staff allocation processes in the face of COVID-19. In line with a dominant view in the medical ethics literature, we claim, first, that no individual health professional has a specific, positive obligation to treat a patient when doing so places that professional at risk of harm, and so there is a clear ethical tension in any reallocation process in this context. Next, we argue that the changing asymmetries of health needs in hospitals means that careful consideration needs to be given to a stepwise process for deallocating staff from their usual duties. We conclude by considering how a justifiable process of reallocating professionals to high-risk clinical roles should be configured once those who are ‘fit for reallocation’ have been identified. We claim that this process needs to attend to three questions that we consider in detail: (1) how the choice to make reallocation decisions is made, (2) what justifiable models for reallocation might look like and (3) what is owed to those who are reallocated.

Development of Potential Alternatives to the Draize Eye Test: The CTFA Evaluation of Alternatives Program. Phase II: Review of Materials and Methods

1992 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 164-171
Author(s):  
Stephen D. Gettings ◽  
Daniel M. Bagley ◽  
Michael Chudkowski ◽  
Janis L. Demetrullas ◽  
Louis C. DiPasquale ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Animal Welfare ◽  
Phase Ii ◽  
Task Force ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Personal Care ◽  
In Vitro Methods ◽  
Ocular Irritation ◽  
Member Company ◽  
Sole Criterion

The CTFA Evaluation of Alternatives Program is a multi-year effort, organised by the CTFA Animal Welfare Task Force, designed to evaluate the performance of currently promising in vitro (alternative) methods to the Draize eye irritancy test. The sole criterion for inclusion of a particular test is that it shows some initial promise as an alternative to the Draize eye test, and that it is under evaluation or development by a participating CTFA member company. Tests are evaluated for their ability to rank and discriminate the ocular irritation potential of prototype cosmetic and personal care formulations compared to the Draize eye test. Test materials and in vitro methods currently under evaluation in Phase II of the CTFA Program are described. Additional tests may be included in subsequent phases of the Program, should it be determined that they show particular promise as replacements for specific types of formulation. Conversely (at the discretion of sponsors), tests may be removed from the Program should initial promise be unfulfilled.

Welfare Phenotyping of Genetically-Modified Mice

2009 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-186
Author(s):  
Margaret Rose
Keyword(s):  
Animal Welfare ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Gene Environment ◽  
Potential Benefits ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Matters Of Concern ◽  
And Function ◽  
Gm Animals ◽  
The Impact

Technologies that enable the targeted manipulation of the genome have created new opportunities to study the role and interplay of specific genes in both the regulation and function of physiological and behavioural processes and in the development of pathological conditions. Despite the potential benefits, there are ethical issues in relation to the application of these technologies, some of which relate to the impact on the welfare of the animals involved. Matters of concern include the methods involved in the derivation and production of genetically-modified (GM) animals and resulting phenotypes, where animal welfare is compromised. In the case of the latter, this may be the predicted consequence of the genetic modification, but the occurrence of unforeseen animal welfare complications is a major challenge in the management of GM animals. There has been a rapid escalation in the development of new GM lines, most of them involving mice. Databases of available lines have been developed by national and international consortia, and researchers have developed standard protocols to describe the phenotype of a new line; increasingly, such data are entered into these databases. The inclusion of animal welfare assessments with these data would provide a powerful and sophisticated tool to promote refinement. The scope, level and frequency of monitoring would facilitate the identification of unpredicted effects and the management of humane endpoints, and would identify opportunities to manage the animals so as to ameliorate negative impacts. Furthermore, by highlighting the subtleties of gene–environment interactions, such data have wider implications in achieving the goals of refinement.

scholarly journals 2019 European Thyroid Association Guidelines for the Treatment and Follow-Up of Advanced Radioiodine-Refractory Thyroid Cancer

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 227-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Fugazzola ◽  
Rossella Elisei ◽  
Dagmar Fuhrer ◽  
Barbara Jarzab ◽  
Sophie Leboulleux ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Personal Experience ◽  
Clinical Evidence ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Task Force ◽  
Favourable Outcome ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Duration Of Treatment ◽  
Significant Negative Impact

The vast majority of thyroid cancers of follicular origin (TC) have a very favourable outcome, but 5–10% of cases will develop metastatic disease. Around 60–70% of this subset, hence less than 5% of all patients with TC, will become radioiodine refractory (RAI-R), with a significant negative impact on prognosis and a mean life expectancy of 3–5 years. Since no European expert consensus or guidance for this challenging condition is currently available, a task force of TC experts was nominated by the European Thyroid Association (ETA) to prepare this document based on the principles of clinical evidence. The task force started to work in September 2018 and after several revision rounds, prepared a list of recommendations to support the treatment and follow-up of patients with advanced TC. Criteria for advanced RAI-R TC were proposed, and the most appropriate diagnostic tools and the local, systemic and palliative treatments are described. Systemic therapy with multikinase inhibitors is fully discussed, including recommendations on how to start it and at which dosage, on the duration of treatment, and on the management of side effects. The appropriate relationship between the specialist and the patient/family as well as ethical issues are covered. Based on the available studies and on personal experience, the experts provided 39 recommendations aimed to improve the management of advanced RAI-R TCs. Above all of them is the indication to treat and follow these patients in a specialized setting which allows the interaction between several specialists in a multidisciplinary team.

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