WHAT'S NEXT

Tell the Pittsburgh Med Center to Stop Using Live Pigs for Training
  1. Signatures
    577 out of 1,000
    Petitioning
    1. Executive VP and Chief Medical Officer (Marshall W. Webster, M.D.)
  2. Created By
    Brandon Bosworth
    Honolulu, HI
About this Petition Petition Letter Petition Updates
How We Won

May 19, 2011

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center was among fewer than 5 percent of schools still using live animals for trauma training. Hundreds of Change.org community members joined the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in urging UPMC to adopt more humane training methods. Six months ago, UPMC agreed to start phasing out the use of live pigs, but meanwhile trauma courses continued to use animals.

PCRM and Change.org members continued to pressure the school to end their deadly pig lab. This week, PCRM confirmed that UPMC has officially discontinued the use of live animals for trauma training, congratulating the school on its decision to "provide the most up-to-date, sophisticated training available and adhere to the ethical and humane practices that doctors pledge to uphold."

Update 11/04/10: The UPMC has agreed to phase out the use of live pigs for trauma training. But with the next course taking place Nov. 18 and 19, they need to make the transition now, before any more pigs are subjected to unnecessary cruelty. Please urge UPMC to make the humane change immediately.

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine filed a complaint with the USDA concerning the use of live pigs for medical training at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. The pigs are used as part of Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS). According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, ATLS training "typically involves performing various medical procedures including cutting into the chest, neck, and abdomen." The pigs are killed after being victimized by unneeded surgeries.


There is no reason to put pigs through this. Alternative training tools exist, such as  high-tech mannequins like Synman and TraumaMan. Both have been recommended by the American College of Surgeons. Only 11 of the 225 medical facilities offering trauma training  in North America still use live animals for this purpose.


Tell the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center that the use of live animals to train physicians in ATLS courses is cruel and unnecessary. And tell them soon, as the next round of ATLS training begins October 14, which means more pigs will soon find themselves under the knife.

Recent Signatures

Please End the Use of Pigs in ATLS Training

Greetings,

I am writing to ask that you immediately end the use of live pigs in the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) courses. While I understand you have made the commitment to phasing out the use of pigs, I urge you to make the change immediately, before your next training session.

The use of live animals in ATLS courses is cruel and outdated. UPMC is one of only 11 of the 225 medical facilities offering trauma training in North America still using live animals for this purpose.

The American College of Surgeons has approved simulators such as the TraumaMan and Synman for this course, so there is no justification for the continued use of live animals. Please end this cruel and unnecessary practice.

Thank you for making the humane decision.

[Your name]

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