RESEARCH TECHNICIAN III

School of Medicine

Established in 1930, Duke University School of Medicine is the youngest of the nation's top medical schools. Ranked sixth among medical schools in the nation, the School takes pride in being an inclusive community of outstanding learners, investigators, clinicians, and staff where interdisciplinary collaboration is embraced and great ideas accelerate translation of fundamental scientific discoveries to improve human health locally and around the globe. Composed of more than 2,600 faculty physicians and researchers, nearly 2,000 students, and more than 6,200 staff, the Duke University School of Medicine along with the Duke University School of Nursing, and Duke University Health System comprise Duke Health, a world-class academic medical center. The Health System encompasses Duke University Hospital, Duke Regional Hospital, Duke Raleigh Hospital, Duke Health Integrated Practice, Duke Primary Care, Duke Home Care and Hospice, Duke Health and Wellness, and multiple affiliations.

Job Summary

Perform a variety of technical duties involved in basic through advanced gnotobiotic colony management.

Special Conditions of Employment

Working Schedule

• Must be able to work a flexible working schedule based on workload and deadlines.

• Must be able to work assigned standard schedules, including (but not limited to) Mon-Fri, Wed-Sun, and Tue-Sat shifts.

• Must be able to work on rotating on-call duties after hours and on weekends.

Occupational Health and Safety

As a safeguard for the employee and the animals, medical examinations and risk assessments are performed.  Some immunizations or further diagnostics may be required before working with specific animals or animal populations as determined by occupational health medical personnel, including, but not limited to:

• TB testing and clearance;

• Hepatitis B (proof of immunization and/or vaccination);

• Rabies (proof of immunization and/or vaccination);

• Tetanus (current vaccination less than 10 years);

• Measles (proof of immunization and/or vaccination);

• Periodic physical examinations including respiratory fit tests);

• Other vaccines or testing as required by EOHW standards.

Hazard Exposure

The animal facility has a variety of environmental conditions. Specifically, employees may be exposed to potentially hazardous noise, dust, chemicals, extreme heat, and animal waste products. The duration of exposure to any of the above is dependent on assigned duties. Some aspects of this position may expose the incumbent to potentially zoonotic and other biohazardous agents. Appropriate protective clothing and equipment may be required and will be provided when required, accompanied by appropriate training.

Work Performed

• Oversees isolator production. Performs specialized experimental procedures on rodents housed in isolators and ensures all gnotobiotic isolators and entrance/exit rooms are maintained in a clean and orderly fashion for breeding programs and defined experimental systems.

• Maintains the integrity of the animals, the isolators, and packing room(s) by ensuring proper breeding procedures are followed and appropriate colony levels are maintained for optimum production in compliance with all bio-security procedures. Performs breeding, weaning, and euthanasia in isolators.

• Performs a variety of complex procedures requiring technical expertise such as venipuncture of varying sites on rodent species, drug administration, surgical assistance, anesthesia monitoring, post-operative care, health assessment, and injections.

• Maintains and monitors the health, production, and physical environment of investigator animals and notifies the supervisor of variances.

• Maintains isolator breeding records including foundation charts and reports of all colony levels, number of new births, litters weaned, weanling disposition, retirement, number of animals shipped, and animals euthanized for all strains in each isolator. 

• Performs basic gnotobiotic tasks such as room cleaning/stocking and preparing/sterilizing supplies.

• Evaluates and interprets collected data and prepares reports and analyses setting forth progress, adverse trends, and appropriate recommendations or conclusions.

• Supervises the receipt of incoming animals and administers all animal orders shipped from the isolators and packing room. Manages animal transfers between isolators, into isolator cages and conventional housing.

• Maintains the inventory of materials, supplies, and equipment such as instruments, microscopes, incubators, freezers, etc. for the performance of gnotobiotic operations; monitors any necessary repairs.

• Performs quality assurance and environmental sampling procedures to monitor the proper functioning of isolators and the microbiological status.

• Performs the duties of husbandry staff or research technicians as needed.

• Performs all job-related duties following company safety procedures; ensures adherence to regulatory requirements, departmental SOPs, policies, practices, and IACUC protocols.

• Provides technical guidance, instructions, and consultation to faculty, research students, and staff members as required. Develops training materials for Gnotobiotic Core employees and assists with the training of technical personnel as the Gnotobiotic Core expands.

• Collaborates with Principal Investigators on special projects or studies.

• Consults with principal investigators and their laboratory staff to plan diagnostic testing needed for experimental schedules and to discuss animal health concerns and sample collection requirements.

• Communicates animal availability, product information, and delivery schedules to potential customers. 

• Resolves basic and moderately complex problems, investigator complaints, internal inquiries, and issues regarding animal orders.

• Assists the manager of the Gnotobiotic Core to achieve the needs of research projects and the efficient use of facilities and technical abilities; identifies and implements techniques to improve productivity, increase efficiency, and reduce cost.

• Makes recommendations to the Director of Veterinary Services and the Manager of the Gnotobiotic Core, and participates in meetings regarding gnotobiotic services.

• Communicates with DLAR administrative staff to properly bill researchers for services.

• Reviews work of lower-level laboratory personnel within designated areas and assists in training new personnel.

• Performs on-call requirements as assigned which include weekend and holiday rotations.

• Performs all basic through advanced Breeding Core Colony Management tasks upon request.

• Maintains inventory of animals, ensures mouse order fulfillment, and does forecasting for PIs.

• Performs on-call requirements as assigned which include weekend and holiday rotations.

Training

• Conducts and helps maintain training programs for DLAR and scientific staff.

• Participates in outreach with research laboratories through brown bag seminars, Mouse IACUC Workshops, and others as needed.

Budget and Recharges

• Performs responsible tracking and submission of service requests invoices and recharges to the gnotobiotic core manager and other parties.

Record Keeping

• Maintains appropriate documentation for all duties following all applicable departmental, institutional, local, state, and federal laws, regulations, policies, guidelines, and SOPs, and based on contemporary professional standards.

Professional Conduct and Behavior

• Demonstrates professional conduct and behavior at all times when performing job duties and rendering services to the scientific community, especially as they relate to customer service, attendance and punctuality, respectful demeanor and interactions, professional language and communications, appropriate effort and initiative, accountability and integrity, boundary maintenance and confidentiality, emotional self-regulation and responsiveness to feedback.

• Maintains professional standards and adheres to all federal, state, and university regulations and policies regarding the use of animals in research while when performing job duties.

• Fosters teamwork and collegiality between the various groups of DLAR and the scientific community.

Others

• Performs other related duties incidental to the work described herein as assigned by the supervisor based on operational needs.

Preferences

Working experience with a Gnotobiotic mouse model/maintaining isolators for Gnotobiotic rodents or rodent barrier facilities is highly desirable. Training will be provided. Experience with laboratory animal husbandry care and/or microbiology desired. Experience maintaining compliance with IACUC protocols and regulatory and accreditation agencies preferred.

Characteristics

Possesses the ability to multi-task, excellent written and verbal communication skills, and organizational skills. Pays attention to detail. Possesses working knowledge of computer software (MS Word, MS Excel, and databases). Is self-motivated. Projects a positive attitude. Identifies and solves problems. Follows-up. Works well with internal and external customers and colleagues.

Minimum Qualifications

Education

Work generally requires skills acquired through the completion of a bachelor's degree in botany, biology, zoology, psychology or other science related scientific field program.

Experience

Work requires two years of research experience. A related master's OR AN EQUIVALENT COMBINATION OF RELEVANT EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE degree may offset required years of experience on a 1:1 basis, e.g., a two year master's degree in lieu of two years of experience.

Job Code: 00000691 RESEARCH TECHNICIAN III
Job Level: 10

Duke is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing employment opportunity without regard to an individual's age, color, disability, gender,gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

Duke aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, and belonging. Our collective success depends on the robust exchange of ideas—an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achieve this exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feel secure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals are respected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our community have a responsibility to uphold these values.

Essential Physical Job Functions: Certain jobs at Duke University and Duke University Health System may include essential job functions that require specific physical and/or mental abilities. Additional information and provision for requests for reasonable accommodation will be provided by each hiring department.