Morristown Hospital To Stop Using Live Animals For Training

MORRISTOWN, N.J.– Morristown Medical Center announced Thursday that it will no longer use live dogs to train emergency medicine residents.

A national physicians group took out billboards inside two NJ Transit stations and along the turnpike, according to reports.

The hospital said it used the dogs in a four-hour offsite course, NJ.com reported.

According to NJ.com, the billboard sponsors – Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine – said the dogs were euthanized afterward.

"Trainees are instructed to make incisions, insert a tube into a dog’s chest cavity, crack open the breastbone in order to access the heart, and insert or drill a needle into the animal’s bones," PCRM said on its website. "At the end of each training session, the animals are killed."

The hospital on Thursday responded via social media:

"Having reviewed current widespread practices and replacements for animal use, Morristown Medical Center has determined that the use of animals is not essential for training of emergency medicine physicians," the hospital said in a Facebook post. "As such, Morristown Medical Center will begin using either simulators or cadavers for this specialized, annual training."

Image via Wikimedia Commons