Sponsored Programs Administration
Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)
Contacts | Forms | Meeting Schedule | NDSU Guidelines | Regulations & Resources |
IACUC Guidelines :: SOP :: Guidelines for Writing
Standard Operating Procedures
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are documents or "recipes" that describe how particular research activities are performed. The use of SOPs:
- helps to ensure that the interpretation of observed treatment differences is not confounded by inconsistencies in procedural methodology,
- provides a documented historical record of the evolution of a particular procedure,
- facilitates the training of new personnel, and expedites the preparation and IACUC review of protocols.
These guidelines for preparing SOPs are based on those developed by the USDA/APHIS Denver Wildlife Research Center, Lakewood, Colorado (No. A-1.R3) and on a talk presented at the Workshop on the Guide for the Care and Use of Agricultural Animals (San Diego, March 19, 1997) by Michael E. Mispagel, Ph.D., Quality Assurance Manager at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine.
Date Prepared: 03/25/97
| Title: Suggested Guidelines for Writing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) | ||
| I. Purpose: | ||
| To provide guidelines for preparing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). | ||
| II. Procedure: | ||
|
A. |
Writing Style | |
| SOPs will be written in outline form using a succinct prose style. The words "will" or "shall" are to be used in describing procedural steps. The words "should," "could," and "may" are to be avoided as they convey to the reader that an option may exist. SOPs will have a Title, describe the Purpose of the procedure, contain a list of the materials and equipment, enumerate the Procedural steps, and inform the reader of health or safety concerns. Sections of the SOP will be numbered in following fashion: Roman numerals; Capitalized alphabet; Arabic numbers and lower case alphabet. The person who performs the procedure most often may be the person who is best qualified to write the SOP. The completed SOP will be "tested" or "reviewed" by colleagues and will contain the signature of the principal investigator or facility manager. |
||
|
B. |
Identification Number | |
| Each SOP will be given a unique identification number. For example, an SOP describing the how ultrasound is used in estimating swine carcass characteristics (backfat depth and depth of the L. dorsi muscle) might have a number ARSC220-10. The number in this case identifies the SOP as being associated with a particular Animal and Range Science Course. | ||
|
C. |
Page Numbering | |
| Each
page will be number in the upper right hand corner as follows: No. ARSC220-10 Page 1 of 3 (w/attachment, if applicable) |
||
|
D. |
Preparation Date and Author Identification | |
| Each
SOP will contain the date of creation and the name of initials of
the person who created the document. This information will be placed
on the upper left hand corner as follows: Date Prepared: 03/25/97:jwg Date Revised: 03/28/97:jwg Revision dates and revisor's initials will be appended to the original "Date Prepared" listing as indicated above. |
||
| III. Review and Distribution | ||
| SOPs will be reviewed annually or as needed. Revised SOPs will be distributed to users and users will be asked to destroy their older copy. Archival copies of the SOP will be maintained by the principal investigator or the facility manager. Copies of current (active) SOPs will be available in the laboratory or at the work site where the procedures are to be carried out. | ||
| IV.Assurance | ||
| I have read this document and approve its contents. I certify that the document will be made available to all personnel to which it applies. | ||
| __________________________________ | ____________ |
| Principal Investigator or Facility Manager | Date |
If the layout of this web page appears plain, and you see few or no graphics, you are probably looking at it with a browser or device that does not fully support CSS.
While this site looks more appealing through CSS-compliant browsers, it content is the same for any web browser