Stepwise Imperatives for Improving the Protection of Animals in Research and Education in Canada.

In this paper, we review the standard-setting tools of different levels of government in Canada for overseeing the care of animals used in science against a landscape of other international efforts. We find regulatory inconsistencies, argue that the related shortcomings are detrimental to the level of care afforded to animals, and offer suggestions for a centralized and proactive approach that could close the existing gaps. Given the resources, cost, and time it would take to transform the current system into a single cohesive one, the proposed approach is a stepwise one, and begins with the addition of two new Rs-Reflection and Responsiveness-to the existing 3Rs framework: Replacement, Refinement, and Reduction.

Priorities and opportunities for advocacy in SCI: An international web-based review.

Context: For the growing number of people with spinal cord injuries worldwide, advocacy organizations are an invaluable resource of information and education during recovery and rehabilitation.

Objective: To examine the structure, information, and accessibility of websites from international organizations that serve and advocate for individuals with SCI.

Methods: We performed a content analysis of information available from SCI organizations returned from a Google search.

Equity in Clinical Care and Research Involving Persons with Disorders of Consciousness.

People with disorders of consciousness (DoC) are characteristically unable to synchronously participate in decision-making about clinical care or research. The inability to self-advocate exacerbates preexisting socioeconomic and geographic disparities, which include the wide variability observed across individuals, hospitals, and countries in access to acute care, expertise, and sophisticated diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic interventions. Concerns about equity for people with DoC are particularly notable when they lack a surrogate decision-maker (legally referred to as "unrepresented" or "unbefriended").