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Standards review project

The ACVM Group is initiating a review of its standards. The intention is to have them all reviewed and revised by December 2002.

The review of some of the standards is not urgent and they require very little revision, while other standards require immediate and extensive attention. In some cases new standards will have to be written to replace sections that have been removed from existing standards. For example, the chemistry standard has been revised recently and all references to biological products have been removed, prompting a need for a specific standard for the identification  and characterisation of biological products.

References to good laboratory and field practices in other standards have caused some confusion. This is most noticeable in the standards for residue data. Consequently, the ACVM Group intends to consolidate these references into the research standard.

In subsequent issues of AgVetLink information will be provided about which standards are being reviewed and the related submission process.

The ACVM Standard and Guidelines for Good Manufacturing Practice and the Research Standard will be the first to be reviewed and revised. The documents can be examined on the ACVM Group website through the 'publications' pathway. If you have any comments on the standards (concerns, additions, deletions, clarifications or recommendations) please send them to:

Chris Boland
National Manager ACVM Standards
ACVM Group
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
P O Box 2526
WELLINGTON
Email: bolandc@maf.govt.nz

Standing Order

The ACVM Group is working on a standard for the required content of a Standing Order, to be included in the Code of Practice for the Use of Veterinary and Human Medicines in Research, Testing and Teaching Organisations. The code, which is in the latter stage of development, is being sponsored and co-ordinated by the Royal Society of New Zealand.

The Standing Order is a veterinary authorised set of directions to be followed by non-veterinary personnel when using veterinary and human medicines within such organisations. The intention is for the Order to be concise enough to provide a level of control over medicine use on animals that is equivalent to the control achieved when the veterinarian is supervising in person. The ACVM document will provide a framework for each of the organisations to 'fill in' according to their own circumstances.

It is possible that the concept of the Standing Order may be included in future MAF-related codes.

For further information regarding the code and its progress, contact the Royal Society c/o Ms Gill Sutherland, phone 04 472 7421 or fax 04 473 1841.