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Job Title

Veterinary Technician Assistant - Small Animal OR

Agency

Texas A&M University

Department

Vet Med-Teaching Hospital

Proposed Minimum Salary

$16.35 hourly

Job Location

College Station, Texas

Job Type

Staff

Job Description

Glimpse of the Job

Join our team at the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital! We're seeking a Veterinary Technician Assistant - Sterile Processing to join our team in the Small Animal Operating Room. In this role, you'll assist the professional staff and help to maintain a sanitary and functionally well-organized service. Join us at the Texas A&M Small Animal Teaching Hospital and make a difference in the lives of animals and the future of veterinary medicine!

Opportunities to Contribute

+ Hands-On Experience: Engage in meticulous disinfection and cleaning processes, including instrument decontamination, packing, wrapping, and sterilization. Operate various sterilization equipment and ensure biological quality control, gaining valuable hands-on experience in maintaining a sterile environment.

+ Collaborative Environment: Work closely with the team to manage inventory and supply needs. Procure and stock supplies, pull necessary sterile items for procedures, and maintain an organized instrument decontamination room. Collaborate with colleagues to ensure the operating room is well-stocked and ready for each procedure.

+ Impactful Work: Play a crucial role in maintaining a safe, clean, and sanitary work environment, contributing to the well-being of patients and the efficiency of the surgical team. Implement best practices for infectious disease control and sanitation, oversee safety procedures, and perform regular cleaning and equipment maintenance.

Minimum Qualifications

+ High School Diploma or equivalent combination of education and experience

+ Two years of related experience in sterile processing, veterinary or related medical setting

Possessing strong interpersonal and communication skills, the ability to multi-task, and work cooperatively with others, this individual is adaptable to changing schedules and assignments, taking the initiative to complete duties independently. They demonstrate flexibility and tolerance to frequent task changes, meticulous attention to detail, and manual dexterity for handling fragile instruments. Additionally, they have a working knowledge of spreadsheet and word processing software programs.

The well-qualified candidate will also possess

+ Experience in a medical or veterinary setting

+ Certified Veterinary Assistant (CVA), Certified Registered Central Service Technician (CRCST), Certified Medical Assistant

+ Experience decontaminating, inspecting, assembling, packing, wrapping, and sterilizing surgical instruments

+ Experience with various sterilization methods

+ Knowledge of Veterinary/Medical terminology

What you need to know

Salary: Starting at $16.35/hour.

Schedule: Weekday shifts are assigned by supervisor and can be one of the following: 11am-8pm, 10am-7pm, 9am-6pm, 8am-5pm or 7am-4pm.

Please Note: Persons in this position are considered essential when the University declares an emergency, campus closure, class cancellations, etc., and are therefore required to report to work and remain on duty unless/until relieved by the direct supervisor.

What you need to do

Apply! A cover letter and resume a re strongly recommended and will help in our review. You may upload them on the application under the CV/Resume section.

Some Responsibilities Include :

+ Disinfection and Cleaning: Process instruments upon arrival, perform meticulous disinfection, decontamination, packing, wrapping, and sterilization. Monitor and operate sterilization equipment, quarantine instruments, and ensure biological quality control before releasing items.

+ Inventory and Supply Management: Procure and stock supplies from storage and pharmacy, pull necessary sterile items for procedures, and submit daily supply orders for the operating room. Deliver and picks up orders, maintain a quick reference for common need to order items, and keep the instrument decontamination room stocked and organized. Unload the dumbwaiter, stock items in their proper locations, and restock unused items.

+ Maintain Sanitary Environment: Ensure best practices for infectious disease control and sanitation to maintain a clean and organized work environment. Provide oversight for safety procedures, use proper PPE, and follow VMTH infection control policies. Perform regular cleaning of the surgery suite, including all related areas, clean and disinfect equipment, and perform basic equipment maintenance.

+ General and Peri-Operative Duties: Adhere to aseptic and sterile techniques per AAHA, AORN, and AAMI guidelines, and maintain compliance with AAHA/AVMA/IACUC surveys. Responsible for MSDS chemical guidelines, direct instrument/supply requests, and troubleshoot equipment. Assist with specimen handling, patient transfer, and submit charges for procedures. Precept new team members, maintain training materials, and organize documents, order forms, sterilization cards, and nurse's notes. Assist with peri-operative patient care, verify patient and procedure details, and set up the operating room. Circulate surgical procedures, assist anesthesia, maintain surgical records, and ensure a sterile field. Document sharps and bio-hazardous waste disposal, and check for corrections in records. Report to supervisor/team leader for assignments.

+ Training, Compliance and Administrative Procedures: Maintain current training and certification, follow Texas A&M and VMTH policies, and submit time and leave requests promptly. Communicate via various media, assist in policy revision, and independently manage assigned responsibilities, including inventory. Maintain service inventory pull sheets and pack lists and ensure compliance with AAHA/AVMA/IACUC/AALAC/USDA surveys. Arrive on time, dressed in surgical attire, and assist with veterinary student labs, clinical research, and resident training labs. Participate in CE classes and local seminars as scheduling permits.

Why Texas A&M University?

We are a prestigious university with strong traditions, core values (https://www.tamu.edu/about/coreValues.html) , and a community of caring and collaboration.  Amenities associated with a major university, such as sporting and cultural events, state-of-the-art recreation facilities, the Bush Library and Museum, and much more await you.  Experience all that a big city has to offer but with a reasonable cost-of-living and no long commutes.

+ Medical, (https://www.tamus.edu/benefits/medical/) prescription drug, dental, (https://www.tamus.edu/benefits/dental/) vision, life and AD&D, (https://www.tamus.edu/benefits/life-add/) flexible spending accounts , and long-term disability insurance (https://www.tamus.edu/benefits/long-term-disability/) with Texas A&M contributing to employee health and basic life premiums

+ 12-15 days (https://employees.tamu.edu/employee-relations/leave/index.html) of annual paid holidays

+ Up to eight hours of paid sick leave (https://employees.tamu.edu/employee-relations/leave/paid/sick.html)  and at least  eight hours of paid vacation (https://employees.tamu.edu/employee-relations/leave/paid/vacation.html)   each month

+ Automatic enrollment in the  Teacher Retirement System of Texas (https://www.trs.texas.gov/Pages/Homepage.aspx)

+ Health and Wellness: Free exercise programs and release time (https://flourish.tamu.edu/wellness-release-time/)

+ Professional Development: All employees have access to free  LinkedIn Learning (https://linkedinlearning.tamu.edu/)  training, webinars, and limited financial support to attend conferences, workshops, and more

+ Educational release time and tuition assistance (https://livingwell.tamu.edu/employee-tuition-assistance)  for completing a degree while a Texas A&M employee

+ Living Well, (https://livingwell.tamu.edu/) a program at Texas A&M that has been built by employees, for employees

Instructions to Applicants: Applications received by Texas A&M University must either have all job application data entered, or a resume attached. Failure to provide all job application data or a complete resume could result in an invalid submission and a rejected application. We encourage all applicants to upload a resume or use a LinkedIn profile to pre-populate the online application.

All positions are security-sensitive. Applicants are subject to a criminal history investigation, and employment is contingent upon the institution’s verification of credentials and/or other information required by the institution’s procedures, including the completion of the criminal history check.

Equal Opportunity/Veterans/Disability Employer.