Students Opt-Out of Killing Pigs in Pointless Practice Surgeries at OHSU
Good news from Oregon Health & Science University: There will be no pigs killed in the school’s obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN) residency program this year!
Internal documents PETA obtained from the university indicate that the medical residents didn’t want to do it and shared their views with the administration.
“The pig lab will not occur this year due to decreased enthusiasm from the Chief resident class.”
– Internal OHSU staff e-mail sent to Dr. Nathan Selden, dean of the OHSU School of Medicine
PETA is deeply thankful for this move. And in a letter sent today, more than 175 physicians called on the university’s new Board of Directors Chair Chad Paulson and interim President Steve Stadum to make the decision permanent.
PETA has also let the administration know that we are pausing our campaign against the cruel pig laboratory and instead offering support to the school in obtaining superior, animal-free technology.
Some of the e-mails PETA obtained reveal that chief resident physicians and another resident physician at the university expressed concerns about using live pigs in surgical training. Yet the school continued to require the mutilations, wasting more than $13,000 to purchase and kill 14 female pigs between March 2022 and April 2023.
More than 100 accredited OB/GYN residency programs confirmed that they don’t use live animals in physician training. Programs at Aurora Sinai Medical Center, Rush University Medical Center, and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center ended their use of live pigs in favor of animal-free simulation technology after hearing from PETA. Henry Ford Hospital adopted a public policy against this practice after discussions with PETA.
What You Can Do
Please take action today and urge Oregon Health & Science University to permanently abandon its cruel, deadly training on live pigs and adopt a public policy banning the use of live animals in its OB/GYN residency training program.
