Veterinary Technician Assistant - Small Animal Operating Room

Job Title

Veterinary Technician Assistant - Small Animal Operating Room

Agency

Texas A&M University

Department

Vet Med-Teaching Hospital

Proposed Minimum Salary

Commensurate

Job Location

College Station, Texas

Job Type

Staff

Job Description

Our Commitment

Texas A&M University is committed to enriching the learning and working environment by promoting a culture that respects all perspectives, talents & lived experiences.  Embracing varying opinions and perspectives strengthens our core values which are: Respect, Excellence, Leadership, Loyalty, Integrity, and Selfless Service.

Who we are

The Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) is an institution that represents 100 years of growth from a small school of veterinary medicine in 1916 to its present role as a major veterinary educational, medical, and research center. Today, we are one of the largest schools of veterinary medicine in the United States, training nearly 600 Doctor of Veterinary Medicine students each year. We support collaboration and teamwork that turns today's discoveries into proactive solutions for animals, humans, and the environment. Together, we strive to support the goals of the faculty, staff and students in teaching, research and outreach programs.  To learn more, please visit our website https://vetmed.tamu.edu/  

What we want

The Sterile Processing Veterinary Technician Assistant, under supervision of a Veterinary Technician I or higher, assists in the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital (VMTH) performing a variety of basic functions of limited complexity.

What you need to know

Compensation will be commensurate to selected hire’s experience.

Required Education and Experience:

• High School Diploma or equivalent combination of education and experience. 

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

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Working knowledge of spreadsheet and word processing software programs.

• Interpersonal and communication skills.

• Ability to multi-task and work cooperatively with others.

• Ability to be flexible and tolerant to frequent task changes. Is adaptable to changing schedules, or assignments, and takes the initiative to complete duties and independently assigned responsibilities. Manual dexterity with the ability to handle fragile instruments.

• Meticulous with strong attention to detail.

Preferred Qualifications:

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

• Experience in a medical or veterinary setting.

• Knowledge of Veterinary/Medical terminology.

• Experience decontaminating, inspecting, assembling, packing, wrapping, and sterilizing surgical instruments.

• Experience with various sterilization methods.

Responsibilities:

• Disinfection and Cleaning: Processes instruments as they arrive at the decontamination area. Performs all meticulous duties necessary for instrument disinfection, decontamination, packing, wrapping, and sterilization. Monitors and operates various sterilization equipment. Quarantines instruments and run biological quality control of instruments and release items only after results of biological are returned. Assists with precepting new team members and cross-trainers.

• Inventory and Supply Management: Procures and stocks supplies from the storage room and pharmacy/warehouse. Pulls necessary sterile supplies, sterile instruments, and equipment appropriate for the assigned and posted procedure. Submits a daily order for supplies in the operating room. Creates, updates, and maintains a quick reference of common needs to order items for pharmacy and outside orders. Maintains a stocked, cleaned, and organized instrument decontamination room. Unload the dumbwaiter throughout the day. Restocks any unused items.

• Maintain safe, clean, sanitary work environment: Provides best practices for infectious disease control and sanitation activities to ensure a consistently clean and organized working environment. Helps provide oversight for faculty, staff, and students in the service area-specific safety procedures. Uses proper PPE and follow safety guidelines when handling soiled/infectious items. Follow VMTH infection control policies. Performs daily, weekly, and periodic cleaning of the entire surgery suite including the operating room suites, sub-sterile hallway, central sterile and decontamination rooms, storage areas, OR locker rooms, break room, and all instrument handling areas. Cleans and disinfects equipment. Performs basic equipment maintenance and cleaning.

• General and Peri-Operative Duties: Observes and reports behavior problems or conditions that develop with animals to appropriate medical staff verbally and in writing with the use of a computer. Adheres to the principles and practices of aseptic and sterile techniques according to the guidelines of AAHA, AORN and AAMI guidelines. Maintains compliance for AAHA/AVMA/IACUC surveys. Learns and is responsible for MSDS guidelines of chemicals used within the service and uses proper chemicals for cleaning instruments. Directs instrument/supply requests and unresolved issues to the designated resource, team leader or supervisor. Tests, locates, connects, operates, and troubleshoots equipment. Follows protocols and policies to request supplies and handle broken equipment. Assists surgeon/surgery student with specimen handling and submission. Assists with patient transfer as needed before and after surgery. Submits correct charges for procedures and any items checked out to other services or research accounts and document the charge in the tracking log. Maintains training binder and case log. Scans documents, order forms, sterilization cards, and nurse’s notes. Maintains organization of the folders and scanned documents. Assists faculty, residents, interns, students, and other veterinary technicians in peri-operative patient care. Reads available texts about surgical procedures if not familiar prior to patient arrival to the O.R. Verifies the correct patient and procedure to be performed in accordance with the checklist. Pulls necessary sterile supplies, sterile instruments, and equipment appropriate for the procedure. Sets up the operating room prior to patient arrival. Reads the patient's medical record, prior to patient’s arrival to the OR, relates any pertinent information to the team leader, and plans their care according to the information. Performs all the duties necessary to competently circulate surgical procedures for all services of the small animal hospital. Assists anesthesia as needed during surgery. In conjunction with the surgical team, assists with performing proper patient positioning, head support, eye protection, and limb restraint specific to the surgery while maintaining body alignment and safe patient handling. Maintains and submits medical records. Utilizes departmental checklist to document sharps, instruments and sponge counts pre, intra and post op. Performs proper disposal of sharps and bio-hazardous waste for any case. Checks the tech folder and e-mail for any corrections of the nursing record or charges and changes as needed. Assists with precepting new team members and cross-trainers. Reports to supervisor/team leader for assignments.

• Required training, compliance, and administrative procedures: Maintains and remains current with all required trainings by Texas A&M and VMTH. Follow all Texas A&M and VMTH policies and procedures. Maintains certification or licensure where appropriate. Enters all time and leave requests to direct supervisor promptly. Communicates via various media throughout shift or while on-call according to protocol (ex: text, Microsoft Teams, group me, e-mail, etc). Assists in revising and preparing policies. Independently maintains assigned responsibilities including designated inventory. Maintains service inventory pull sheets, pack lists, and surgeon’s preferences according to departmental guidelines. Assists in maintaining compliance for AAHA/AVMA/IACUC/AALAC/USDA surveys. Arrives in a timely manner to work each day to be properly dressed in surgical attire at the start of the shift. Assists with veterinary student teaching labs as assigned. Assists in clinical research cases and labs, including necessary record keeping. Participates in CE classes and local seminars as scheduling permits. Performs other duties as assigned.

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/Affirmative Action/Veterans/Disability Employer.