# The health case, *after the first report*.

Of 16 facilities whose procedures we read, the case is run and recorded in 6 different ways. The most common, at 6 of 16, is a paper case file kept with the room, and 13 of 16 name a step that tells the lab, none of them only for study animals.

[Open the Vet block](https://streamcell.com/library/vet) · [See the form](https://streamcell.com/library/health-case#the-form)

## Key facts

- **Facilities compared**: 16, from their public procedures, October 2026
- **Ways it's done**: 6
- **Part of**: [The Vet block](https://streamcell.com/library/vet)

## What the procedures reveal

Three findings a vet or facility manager would stop on.

- **13 of 16**: name a step that tells the PI or lab about the case, 8 of them by email. None keeps it for animals whose study is affected.
- **5 of 16**: give the lab a deadline to answer. At 4 of them the vet staff act when it runs out.
- **2 of 14**: case records have a place to note that the lab was told.

## Where do facilities part ways?

One path from the card on the cage to the lab, and the four points where the 16 facilities split.

1. **The case starts from a card on the cage** (11 of 16 facilities)
2. **Who takes the case?**
   - Vet staff or a vet tech: 8 of 16
   - Husbandry and animal care staff: 2 of 16
   - A designate or technician: 2 of 16
   - A manager or supervisor: 1 of 16
   - A vet: 1 of 16
   - The PI or lab: 1 of 16
   - Not stated: 1 of 16
3. **Where is the case kept?**
   - A paper case file: 6 of 16
   - Software plus a card on the cage: 3 of 16
   - A line in a facility log: 3 of 16
   - A vet module in software: 2 of 16
   - The card is the record: 1 of 16
   - One web form per case: 1 of 16
4. **Who has it next?**
   - The PI or lab: 12 of 16
   - A vet: 3 of 16
   - Not stated: 1 of 16
5. **How does the lab hear?**
   - By email: 8 of 16
   - Channel not named: 5 of 16
   - Not stated: 3 of 16
Each dot is one of the 16 facilities whose procedure we read. Where one way clearly leads at a fork, it is outlined.

## How is a health case run and recorded?

The second fork, way by way: where the case is kept.

- **A paper case file** (6 of 16 facilities): Each case or animal gets its own sheet, most often matched to the cage card by a case number, and kept in the room or a binder.
- **Software plus a card on the cage** (3 of 16 facilities): The case is opened in software, and a card on the cage is part of the record: at 2, a treatment card initialed for each dose.
- **A line in a facility log** (3 of 16 facilities): The case is a line in an incident, treatment or room log, plus a card or tag.
- **A vet module in software** (2 of 16 facilities): The case, its plan and its checks live in a vet module in software.
- **The card is the record** (1 of 16 facilities): Assessments and treatments are written on the sick card.
- **One web form per case** (1 of 16 facilities): The vet reports each case to the attending vet: problem, diagnosis, treatment.
Each dot is one facility whose procedure we read. Counted from public procedures, October 2026.

8 of 16 state that the case is written in two or more places, such as software plus the treatment card. Who gives the treatment differs: the lab at 1, the vet team at 2, either by arrangement at 6, a role set on a dashboard at 1, and 6 don't say.

## What should a health case record contain?

The fields facilities' case records carry, with how many of 14 carry each one.

**Health case** (HC). Statuses: Open, Waiting on lab, Under treatment, Monitoring, Closed. Counts are of 14 facilities' forms.

**The case**
- Animal (Link: SoftMouse animal): 9 of 14
- Cage (Link: SoftMouse cage, required): 4 of 14
- Species (Dropdown, required): 5 of 14
- Protocol (Text, required): 7 of 14
- PI (User, required): 8 of 14
- Lab contact (User): 2 of 14
- From report (Link: Sick animal report)
- First seen (Date, required): 5 of 14
- Signs (Dropdown, required): 4 of 14
- What's wrong (Rich text, required): 6 of 14

**Vet assessment** (opens when the workflow reaches it)
- Severity (Dropdown, required): 2 of 14
- Diagnosis (Text): 5 of 14
- Plan (Rich text, required): 8 of 14
- Vet sign-off (Signature, required): 1 of 14

**The lab** (opens when the workflow reaches it)
- Lab told at (Date and time, required): 2 of 14
- Lab must act by (Date)
- Lab's decision (Dropdown)
- Who treats (Dropdown, required): 1 of 14

**Checks and treatments** (opens when the workflow reaches it)
- Log (Table): 10 of 14
- Next recheck (Date): 2 of 14

**Closure** (opens when the workflow reaches it)
- Outcome (Dropdown, required): 5 of 14
- Closing summary (Rich text)

14 of the 16 facilities list what the case record holds, on a form, a sheet, a card, a log or in software.

10 of 14 keep a dated, initialed log of checks or treatments, 9 the animal and 8 each the PI and the plan.

## Find your starting point

Answer yes or no to find the facilities that work the way yours does.

1. Is the case kept in a computer system: software or a web form?
2. Do you file one web form per case, after the fact, for the attending vet?
3. Is there also a treatment card on the cage where each dose is initialed?
4. Does each case or animal get its own sheet or report?
5. Is the case written only on the card on the cage?

- **A paper case file**: You work like 6 of the 16 facilities we read, the most common way. The record number becomes the case number, with a saved view per room.
- **Software plus a card on the cage**: You work like 3 of the 16. The card stays on the cage, and the doses go into the record's log.
- **A line in a facility log**: You work like 3 of the 16. The record replaces the log line.
- **A vet module in software**: You work like 2 of the 16. The module stays, and Streamcell sits beside it.
- **The card is the record**: You work like 1 of the 16. The record becomes the medical record, and the card stays as a flag.
- **One web form per case**: You work like 1 of the 16. The form becomes the vet's report to the attending vet.

## What do the rules ask for?

Care, records and a vet with authority. None sets the lab's deadline or says who treats.

- **Animal Welfare Act regulations:** appropriate methods to prevent, diagnose and treat disease and injury, emergency and weekend care, and an attending vet with authority to ensure adequate care (9 CFR 2.33).
- **The Guide**, as guidance: the vet and the PI decide treatment together; if the PI can't be reached or they don't agree, the vet has authority to treat, remove from study or euthanize; all treatments and outcomes are documented.
- **ACLAM's public statement**, a recommendation: the institution, guided by the attending vet, chooses whether the record is paper, computer or cage card.
- **CCAC guidelines** (Canada): medical records kept onsite, open to the vets, for at least a year.

## How does Streamcell run it?

The default is software plus the card: the card stays on the cage, and the doses go into the record.

1. **Assess**: Jules Ferreira opens HC-0184 from Priya Sood's report on 7756 and records a plan. Robin Mace signs, which locks the assessment.
2. **Tell the lab**: A button emails Noor Adler, the PI on ISH-1009, and the lab contact, with the date the lab must act by.
3. **Lab answers**: Noor picks Treat as advised on the record, and the vet team is emailed. If the date comes with no answer, an 08:00 check emails the lab and the vet.
4. **Treat and close**: Each dose goes in the log. Each morning the vet techs and husbandry staff are emailed the cases under treatment. Robin closes the case as Resolved.

Tell the lab is on every case, as it is at 13 of 16 facilities. "The lab treats" and "the vet team treats" run as two workflows, because Streamcell has no if-then step.

## The research behind this guide

We read the public procedures of 16 research animal facilities in the US and Canada, all universities, in October 2026, and recorded how each one runs a health case. Counts are facilities, not documents.

## Start from the *Vet block*

The sick animal report, the health case and the views a vet uses every day, as one package your team changes to fit.

[Open the Vet block](https://streamcell.com/library/vet)

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Source: https://streamcell.com/library/health-case
Last reviewed: 2026-10-16
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