Independent External Review
The IER System™ is our signature framework for conducting independent, insight-driven reviews of animal care and use programs.
Developed by Dana Briggs Consulting, the IER System™ goes beyond compliance to uncover strategic opportunities for excellence. It brings structure, clarity, and rigour to every review - whether delivered remotely, on-site, or through our hybrid model.
The IER System™ ensures each review is comprehensive, defensible, and tailored to your program’s unique needs so you’re not just audit-ready, you’re future-ready.
Our Approach
It’s important to us that reviews are a positive experience for our clients. We’ve been on the other side of audits and reviews and recognise that being under scrutiny can feel personal and intense. We pride ourselves in being not just professional but also warm, approachable, and compassionate.
In addition, our extensive industry experience provides us with first-hand experience in many aspects of an animal care and use program, which helps to establish rapport, trust, and credibility with stakeholders. We’ve been in their shoes, facing many of those same challenges ourselves. And, as consultants, we’ve seen all sorts of programs, so we take it all in stride.
And, while reviews naturally have a compliance focus, we believe they should also be educational in nature. This means that we actively look for and celebrate evidence of good practice, and seek to understand the context, contributing factors and root cause of compliance concerns.
Outcomes
Our review outcomes focus on supporting institutions to achieve and maintain regulatory compliance, and inspiring institutions and individuals to improve practice across all aspects of their animal care and use program in a way that’s realistic for where they’re at.
Ensuring compliance and supporting continuous improvement in this way creates the best outcomes for all involved - including the animals - and assures the community that the care and use of animals for scientific purposes is undertaken in a responsible, ethical, and humane manner.
Our only agenda is the pursuit of excellence. We offer reviews that are independent, evidence-based, and strategically useful.
Our clients include: Universities, government departments, private research institutes, professional services firms (e.g. ecology consultants), zoos and animal welfare organisations.
Our expert reviewer network lets us bring consistent, high-quality reviews to programs across Australia and New Zealand.
Australia
We routinely provide independent external reviews that meet the requirements described in Section 6 of the Australian code for the care and use of animals for scientific purposes – 8th Edition (2013; the Code).
We’ll assemble the review panel and walk you through the process from start to finish.
New Zealand
Dana is accredited by the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) to perform statutory reviews of Code Holders and their Animal Ethics Committees.
She abides by the Performance Standards for Independent Reviews of Code Holder and Animal Ethics Committees.
Our reviews are built for leaders —not just regulators. We give you insights you can act on, defend, and stand behind.
