Do other med schools use animal testing?

...as part of the course?

My year-group will go through a significant number in the first two years alone, plus whatever the third year lab project involves.

Bit of a debate about it today regarding whether that is worth it, with some quite diverse opinions.

Would computer simulations/videos be better? Perhaps spend the time teaching in the normal way?

Apparently its not a common practice - do ANY other med schools actually even do this?

Reply 1

t3h_y0u553f

Does that include dead animal tissue work?

Reply 2

Renal

This is something that should be discussed with caution - most universities and institutes are discreet on this, for obvious reasons.

Reply 3

Helenia

Cambridge do, but for reasons Renal mentioned, I won't go into too much detail. PM if you really want to know.

Reply 4

Becca-Sarah

I remember overhearing someone while I was waiting for interview, complaining that her rats kept dying before she could extract the liver. They may have been a research student or something, but so far I've not seen a dead animal as part of our course.

Reply 5

Wangers

On a similar vein, I think it would be wise to limit dissemination of numbers etc - perphaps the OP culd modify their post? Not because their sacrifice should go unnoticed and uncared for, but because there are wider principles here and mature discussion on the topic inevitably becomes a emotive flame war if stats start getting tossed around.

I think it is difficult for non medics or indeed non scientists to fully experience the education that is provided with such materials, the easist example would be dissection - it is amazing, would would not like their bodies to be used by those perphaps not so skilled in the art of surgery but on balance the education it provides is unparalelled. Just as certain 'classic' experiements that have shaped our understanding of the living world were done (admittedly in a less regulated time) on animals.

Look up John Gurdon on tadpoles, or any multitude f experiements done on Drosophila Melanogaster. You might find that despite the emotive aspects, their sacrifice was not in vain.

Reply 6

nexttime

Renal

This is something that should be discussed with caution - most universities and institutes are discreet on this, for obvious reasons.

Helenia

Cambridge do, but for reasons Renal mentioned, I won't go into too much detail. PM if you really want to know.

It is a of a shame that such secrecy is necessary, but in hindsight i can see your reasoning.

Wangers

On a similar vein, I think it would be wise to limit dissemination of numbers etc - perphaps the OP culd modify their post

Edited, not that numbers are not important, though. There are different ways to approach such use which may use different methods, different numbers etc.

Reply 7

Chimpyang

Similarly at UCL - with some BSc options - again - best to keep hush.

Reply 8

brokenangel

Not medicine but we use rat elium (intestine) in the 1st year for one module this is kept very quite untill you start that module. Smilarly some 3rdvyear project student us animals. It's not something I agree with and think simulation could be used to show the sane thing without killing animals

Reply 9

terpineol

We cough, might well do.

Though much much less now than a couple of years ago I'm told due to the university trying to bring in strange policies on these things.