Job Details

Veterinarian Technician

Position Number: 6114181
Location: El Paso, TX
Position Type: Agriculture - Veterinary Medicine

Veterinarian Technician

Job ID: 13311
Location: El Paso, TX
Full/Part Time: Full Time
Regular/Temporary: Regular

About UTEP

UTEP is a comprehensive public research university that is increasing access to excellent higher education. We advance discovery of public value and positively impact the health, culture, education, and economy of the community we serve.

The University of Texas at El Paso is America's leading Hispanic-serving university. Located at the westernmost tip of Texas, where three states and two countries converge along the Rio Grande, 84% of our 24,000 students are Hispanic, and more than half are the first in their families to go to college. UTEP offers 172 bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs at the only open-access, top-tier research university in America.

About the Department

The Laboratory Animal Resources Center (LARC) is committed to providing UTEP faculty, staff and students with veterinary and personnel training and expertise in laboratory animal technology and medicine. LARC exists to promote humane animal care and use in support of UTEP's research goals through compliance with the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW) and our own IACUC and departmental policies. The LARC advises and educates researchers on animal experimentation issues and provides guidance and review in the protocol writing process, while promoting contemporary best practices for the responsible use of animals. Our goal is provision of quality animal care which is key to obtaining consistent and reliable data.

Position Information

Hiring Department: Laboratory Animal Research Center

Posting End Date: Open until filled. This posting may close once a sufficient number of qualified applications have been received.

Hours: 40 hours per week, standard Monday- Friday 8:00am- 5:00pm, flexibility is required on evenings, weekends, and holidays.

FLSA status: Exempt

Earliest Start Date: As soon as possible.

Salary: $33,000 annually.

Required Application Materials:

Resume
Cover Letter
List of three references

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

The primary accountabilities are intended to describe the general content of and requirements of this position and are not intended to be an exhaustive statement of duties. Incumbents may perform all or some of the primary accountabilities listed. Specific tasks or responsibilities will be documented in the incumbents' performance objectives as outlined by the incumbents' immediate supervisor or manager. This position is security-sensitive and subject to Texas Education Code 51.215, which authorizes the employer to obtain criminal history record information. A valid driver's license issued by the State where the applicant resides and insurability as defined in UTS 157 may be required to perform the position's essential functions.

Purpose of Position

Summary: Performs highly technical veterinary skills in the care of animals within the research facilities to ensure compliance with SOPs, federal, state, and local guidelines and regulations. Provide faculty animal researchers, staff and students with animal research support while ensuring animal welfare. Provides a critical interface between the Attending Veterinarian (AV), faculty researchers and investigative staff, students, and the IACUC office. Supports the Guide for the care and use of Laboratory Animals, Association for the Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC), while supporting customer needs and enhancing operational efficiencies regarding the proper care and maintenance of laboratory animals, biosafety, biosecurity, and physical plant oversight within UTEP vivarium and other animal use areas.

Essential Functions

Assist in the development and modification, as needed, of animal care policies, procedures, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and practices, which promote the high quality, cost-effective operation of the animal facilities.

Routinely convene with staff and the AV for continuous updates, coordinate the training of animal care staff for their animal care responsibilities; help prepare staff for AALAS certification.

Interact with faculty and staff to provide high quality, responsive animal care services; advise on technological changes affecting laboratory animal research and care.

Perform medical surveillance, diagnostic support, and treatment of clinical cases, which include identification of sick animals, contacting investigators, following veterinary orders, and documentation of cases/treatments.

Coordinate sentinel testing program and animal health monitoring, including environmental and water testing.

Coordinate with the IACUC office to track and provide training for animal care & use and the Occupational Health & Safety Program, including but not limited to hands on and classroom training.

Help ensure compliance with federal, state, and local animal regulatory requirements.

Prepare for and facilitate inspections by internal/external parties (announced and unannounced).

Assist with animal procurement/shipping, including animal records, placement, tracking and census.

Demonstrate care and use of vivarium equipment and provide training and application of current and new equipment, coordinate and facilitate surgical and minor procedural trainings (necropsy, injections, phlebotomy, anesthesia, euthanasia, etc.).

Provide veterinary support for research projects, pre- and post-surgical care, anesthesia, and post-surgery treatments.

Provide anesthesia equipment training, scheduling, maintenance and set up for PI use and assist in the coordination of the annual certification of gas anesthesia equipment of all researchers and LARC systems.

Perform routine veterinary technical skills including administration of various therapeutic measures by IV, IM, SQ, topical, or oral routes, demonstrate proficient animal restraint techniques, tissue sampling, and other routine animal manipulations.

Visit animal holding and use areas within the vivarium and other animal use areas regularly to identify specific, new and refresher animal-use training needs and assure proficiency with routine animal handling and techniques, as well as ensure that all research and LARC staff are kept abreast of new (or changes in) IACUC policies pertaining to animal use and the Occupational Health and Safety Program (OHSP) while fostering good rapport between laboratory and LARC personnel as an ambassador of the LARC Department.

Demonstrate proficiency in ABSL1, ABSL2 procedures and successfully complete training provided to work in an ABSL3 environment if not already proficient.

A strong knowledge of veterinary medicine, technical skills, and animal husbandry standards and regulatory guidelines and requirements, standard operating procedures for species of animals used in behavioral and biomedical research, and special handling techniques for biohazardous or infectious materials; ABSL3 experience is desirable, and certification is required within 12 months of hire.

Perform other duties as assigned.

Knowledge of all Microsoft Office software and able to learn and use institutional software systems.

Complies with all State and University policies.

Supervisory Responsibilities: May assist manager with quality assurance verification or general supervision of staff members.

Qualifications

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

Required Qualifications:

Education: Veterinary Technician License OR a Bachelor's degree in the life sciences (e.g., animal science, biology, microbiology)

and

Experience: At least 3 years of animal experience

Preferred Qualifications:

Experience in a laboratory animal setting

Additional Information

The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to talk or hear, sit; use hands to feel; reach with hands and arms; climb or balance and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl and walk, and the ability to stand for long periods of time. The employee must occasionally lift and move up to 35 pounds and repeatedly lift up to 10 pounds throughout the day. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision and color vision.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee may be regularly exposed to fumes or airborne particles. The employee is occasionally exposed to wet or humid conditions; toxic or caustic chemicals; and outdoor weather conditions. The noise level for this work environment ranges from quiet to moderate.

May be trained and directed to work in an Animal Biosafety Level 3 environment, which poses additional biohazard due to the presence of highly contagious pathogens. Must not be allergic to animal dander or be immuno-deficient. Pregnancy may become a personnel safety factor in some laboratory animal duties. Potential exposure to radiation and biohazards. In addition, incumbent will be required to work safely and effectively in non-containment and the animal biosafety level 2 and 3 containment laboratories.

In keeping with its access, excellence and impact mission, The University of Texas at El Paso is committed to an open, diverse, and inclusive learning and working environment that honors the talents, respects the differences, and nurtures the growth and development of all. We seek to attract faculty and staff who share our commitment.

The University of Texas at El Paso is an Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action Employer. The University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or sexual orientation and gender in employment or the provision of services in accordance with state and federal law. Discrimination on the basis of sex includes an employee's or prospective employee's right to be free from sexual harassment under Title IX of the Higher Education Amendments of 1972.

For accommodation information for employees and applicants with disabilities, please contact UTEP's Equal Opportunity Office at eoaa@utep.edu.

To apply, visit https://zahr-prd-candidate-ada.utshare.utsystem.edu/psp/ZAHRPRDADA/EMPLOYEE/HRMS/c/HRS_HRAM_FL.HRS_CG_SEARCH_FL.GBL?Page=HRS_APP_JBPST_FL&Action=U&FOCUS=Applicant&SiteId=2&JobOpeningId=13311&PostingSeq=1