The Society of Toxicology's 1977 Actions on Laboratory Accreditation, Professional Certification, and Good Laboratory Practices in Toxicology

For several years in the mid-1970s, the Society of Toxicology (SOT) had been studying the feasibility of accrediting toxicology laboratories and/or certifying the competency of individual toxicologists. Committee discussions were held, reports were issued in 1973 and 1974, and a proposal was developed by the spring of 1976. At the annual SOT business meeting in March 1976, the membership voted to establish a committee specifically to deal with the problems involved in accreditation and certification, with the mandate that it develop solid models for membership approval and implementation in these areas. President Robert A. Scala appointed me to chair a Council committee dealing with these issues. Shortly thereafter, because of widespread concern, the Council requested that the Society develop guidelines for conducting toxicologic studies under good laboratory practices. This responsibility was added to the duties of the existing committee dealing with accreditation and certification, and resulted in the formation of a Council Committee on Accreditation, Certification, and Good Laboratory Practices in Toxicology. The interrelationship of the three areas to be reviewed made practical their inclusion in a single committee. However, the impossibility of having one committee deal adequately with the details of each area resulted in the establishment of three separate subcommittees: Accreditation of Toxicology Facilities, Certification of Professionals in Toxicology, and Good Laboratory Practices in Toxicology. It was felt that the most expert and widely representative individuals in the Society should be called upon to serve on these subcommittees. Hence, a list of highly qualified, select individuals from within the membership was developed, and subcommittees were established granting equal representation to industry-commercial toxicology, government-regulatory affairs, and research-academia positions. Enthusiastic and experienced individuals provided leadership for each subcommittee. Council determined that the overall committee should be given every opportunity to function efficiently and rapidly, and thus provided financial support and a target date of December 6, 1976 for the final reports. This allowed time for review by Council and submission to the membership in order to permit sufficient discussion and action at the March 1977 annual meeting. The subcommittees were organized and initiated during the late summer and early fall of 1976, and each member was provided with specific charges and copies of all documents relevant to the area under consideration. A meeting of the subcommittee chairpersons, FDA-EPA scientists, and myself was held August 31 in Rockille, Maryland, to provide interaction between the Society and the agencies. A working meeting of all subcommittees was then held during the week of September 20, 1976, at Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, to develop the initial documents that would comprise the final report. The draft documents were circulated to all members of the subcommittees and to Council for review and suggested changes. The subcommittee chairmen developed the documents into the final report, which was forwarded to President Scala on December 3, 1976. The document was reproduced by the then Office of the Executive Secretary and distributed to all members of the Society. At the SOT annual business meeting in March 1977, the report and the recommendations of the various subcommittees were reviewed. Since many members at that meeting indicated they were unfamiliar with the report or had not received it, President Scala withheld action at that time. Comments on the various proposals were solicited from the membership and reconsideration of the report was proposed. Concern with the educational aspects of the certification proposal prompted involvement of the Education Committee, and a special meeting of the Subcommittee on Certification of Professionals in Toxicology and members of the Education Committee was held in Kansas City, Missouri, April 27 and 28, 1977. The certification proposal was reviewed extensively at that time, with careful consideration of all the members’ comments made to the subcommittee. The Education Committee attacked the problems of defining the scope of toxicology, outlining the scientific training implicit in the education of a toxicologist, and planning for the possibility of continuing education activities so that toxicologists could maintain competence, following completion of formal ed1 For correspondence via fax: (785) 532-448l. E-mail: oehme@vet.ksu.edu. TOXICOLOGICAL SCIENCES62, 187–190 (2001) Copyright © 2001 by the Society of Toxicology