COMPARATIVE MEDICINE SPECIALIST I
Lab Animal Resources


Occupational Summary

Provide husbandry to laboratory animals, maintain animal inventory records and Animal Husbandry and Room Maintenance Records, and perform facility sanitation in animal facilities. Work schedules are assigned by the Facility Manager or his/her designee for that specific animal facility. This position requires weekend and holiday work hours, and involves daily exposure to laboratory animals and their waste products.

Work Performed

The following duties are performed daily under management supervision:

1.Perform daily work involving the handling of conventional and genetically engineered animal models with immunocompromised health status, animals recovering from surgery or other invasive procedures, neonates etc.

2.Perform duties within various animal biosafety levels.

3. Change cages or pens following aseptic and conventional technique and assures animals are not contaminated when outside of their primary enclosure. Maintain animal rooms (secondary enclosures) and facility hallways in a clean state so that secondary infections or other contaminations do not occur. Animal room and hallway maintenance should include sanitation monitoring performed by taking bacterial cultures or RODAC plating.

4. Sanitize animal facility equipment including the use of tunnel washers, rack washers, automatic watering systems and autoclaves for sterilization. Operate cage washer, autoclave and other animal facility equipment. Assemble caging supplies with properly sterilized feed (previously irradiated or autoclaved) and water (acidified, autoclaved, or reverse osmosis) in a manner that assures that they remain sterile through the handling process.

5. Evaluate animal's health each day and report abnormal clinical signs to the veterinary staff. Perform treatments as prescribed by the veterinary staff and report progress of therapies. Provide specialized technical assistance (dosing, tissue procurement, necropsies, and treatments) to veterinarians and investigators.

6. Perform weanings when requested by researcher or staff assuring that each animal's sex is accurately determined and that females and males are properly separated. Palpate breeding animals to determine if females are pregnant and separates them prior to parturition.

7. Record critical facility data/documentation on a daily basis as required by local, state, and federal regulatory agencies overseeing how animals are cared for and used in research, teaching, and education.

8. Track progress of neonates and determine when animals should be weaned; report to the PI and the facility manager and check in animals when weanings are scheduled to occur; monitor and document cages that are overcrowded due to multiple litters in one cage, too many adults in a single cage or animals that are beyond nursing age.

9. Receive and process incoming animals and supplies in the absence of the Facility Manager or designee.

10. Participate in animal quarantine and health surveillance programs for the facility. Adhere to containment practices in the event of an infectious pathogen outbreak or when working in biocontainment facilities.

11. Use current technology including PDAs and bar code scanning applications to record daily cage census, animal health observations, weaned cages, and other important management practices.

12. Report facility and environmental issues that fall outside animal welfare regulatory requirements (as defined in the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals) to Facility Manager or designee. Assist the Facility Manager or designee with incoming animals and supplies.

13. Implement environmental enrichment program intended to minimize animal stress in the research setting.

14. Perform routine euthanasia on laboratory animals according to the American Veterinary Medical Associations (AVMA) Panel on Euthanasia.

15. Provide guidance and training to new animal technicians.

16. Attend technician meetings and training sessions on all aspects of laboratory animal care and uses of animals in biomedical research as scheduled by the supervisory staff.

17. Work weekends and holidays as assigned.

18. Comply with Duke Policies and standard operating procedures.

Skills

Proficient in verbal and written English and Mathematics pertinent to the duties of this positions and situations encountered in the animal facility. Proficiency will be determined by written examination and interview conducted by DLAR staff.

Demonstrated proficiency (didactic and practical) for core DLAR SOPs.

Ability to lift and move 50 lbs. on a regular basis. Long periods of standing.

Customer-focused attitude and enjoys working with similarly dedicated persons in a team fashion within a high-energy research environment. Ability to learn bar code and electronic/PDA technology.

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


The intent of this job description is to provide a representative and level of the types of duties and responsibilities that will be required of positions given this title and shall not be construed as a declaration of the total of the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position. Employees may be directed to perform job-related tasks other than those specifically presented in this description.


Requisition Number
401527224

Location
Durham

Duke Entity
MEDICAL CENTER

Job Code
3502 COMPARATIVE MEDICINE SPECIALIST I

Job Family Level
06

Exempt/Non-Exempt
Non-exempt

Full Time / Part Time
FULL TIME

Regular / Temporary
Regular

Shift
First/Day

Minimum Qualifications
Duke University is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employercommitted to providing employment opportunity without regard to anindividual's age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, genderidentity, 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 robustexchange of ideas—an exchange that is best when the rich diversity ofour perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achievethis exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feelsecure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals arerespected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our communityhave a responsibility to uphold these values.
Essential Physical Job Functions:Certain jobs at Duke University and Duke University Health System mayinclude essential job functions that require specific physical and/ormental abilities. Additional information and provision for requests forreasonable accommodation will be provided by each hiring department.

Education

Work requires a high school diploma or equivalent. ALAT certificationmust be obtained within 18 months of employment.Must have a valid driver license

Experience

Some experience in the care and handling of animals preferred.

Auto req ID

107663BR

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

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.

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