A point on the use of test animals in educational process

Abstract

The article considers the issues of experiments on animals during the training process of medical students. The objective of the work is to assess the possibility, necessity and expediency of experiments on animals during the training of medical students with identification of possible alternatives. An anonymous impersonal survey of 83 interns was conducted. The purpose of the experiments, animal species, methods of anesthesia, respondent’s role in the experiment, and the level of acquired knowledge were investigated. As an option, the respondents offered an alternative to experiments on animals during the educational process. It was found that 47% of respondents perceive experiments on animals during training as an indispensable, traditional and common practice. A significant part of respondents (33.7%) stated complete absence of new information obtained, 47% admitted that the level of knowledge obtained was moderate, and 19.3% reported considerable level of knowledge obtained. Most respondents were not familiar with the same issue in other countries and with the relevant national laws and regulations. In general, 86.7% of respondents expressed their negative attitude to causing harm to animals. The practice of experiments on animals must be brought into accordance with legal requirements. It is unacceptable to use animals for educational purposes, if this goal can be achieved in other ways. Animal testing is justified only when there is a reason to expect that the results will significantly contribute to the solution of current scientific problems. The introduction of alternative methods and means in the educational process will improve the learning process and reduce the number of experiments on animals.