Animal Ethics Officer

About the role

SAHMRI, the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, is recruiting an Animal Ethics Officer for a full-time, two-year contract. Reporting to the Head of Risk and Chair of the Animal Ethics Committee, the role works closely with the Quality, Risk and Safety department, the Animal Welfare and Compliance Officer and researchers to provide administrative and high-level secretarial support to the Animal Ethics Committee, including management of ethics records, protocol tracking, amendment tracking, compliance documentation, reporting systems and governance processes.

Key responsibilities

• Schedule meetings, prepare agendas, minutes, amendments and annual reports for the committee
• Maintain processes and tools to track changes between protocol versions and amendments, escalating discrepancies to the Chair or the Animal Welfare and Compliance Officer
• Work with committee members on applications, amendments and approval queries
• Contribute to developing, reviewing and implementing committee processes and ethics policies
• Prepare reports, submissions and other documents on behalf of the committee
• Maintain records of protocol deviations, adverse events, welfare incidents and non-compliance matters
• Help develop the committee's website, training materials and information resources
• Support Tick@Lab, including user support, workflow administration, record management, reporting, data quality monitoring and training
• Liaise with accrediting agencies on ethics requirements, guidelines and legislation
• Assist the Animal Welfare and Compliance Officer with induction bookings and enrolments

Required profile

• Tertiary qualification or equivalent in a science, public health or research-related field, or equivalent relevant experience
• Confidential administration experience in a health, scientific or medical research environment
• Experience in ethics and/or compliance administration, including rules, guidelines and legislation
• Experience in animal research, welfare and/or ethics is desirable
• Committee secretariat experience, including meeting coordination, agenda and minute preparation, action tracking and record keeping
• Knowledge of the Animal Welfare Act and the Australian Code for the Care and Use of Animals for Scientific Purposes (8th Edition, 2021)
• Attention to detail, organisation, ability to meet deadlines and adapt to changing work demands
• Good written and verbal communication skills and ability to work independently and in a team
• Relevant Australian working rights at the time of application; some out-of-hours work may be required

Required skills

• Proficiency in software applications, including database packages
• Committee secretariat and record management

Salary packaging options are available for SAHMRI employees, and applications close on 2 November 2026.