Auxiliary Animal Care Technician

Job Category

Job Profile

Job Title

Department

Compensation Range

Posting End Date

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the Posting End Date.

Job End Date

This role is anticipated to be 0.2-0.4FTE

At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career.

Job Description Summary

This position is responsible for the daily maintenance and care of laboratory animals; this includes cage changing, providing food and water, performing health checks, administering medications as per written instructions and reporting any signs of ill-health. The cleaning of dirty caging and the preparation of sterile caging is required. This position also includes the general cleaning and maintenance of the facility, record keeping, and inventory. This position includes ensuring ongoing awareness of facility environmental needs and making recommendations for adjustments or changes to ensure ongoing operational proficiency.

Organizational Status

Works collaboratively with other technicians, faculty, and staff.

• Reports to the Team Lead for day-to-day activities. Formal reporting to the Manager, Biosciences Facility.
• This position can expect to interact with a variety of people working with teaching and research animals, including, but not limited to; technical and support staff, research faculty, their staff, and students. This position may have contact with various UBC departmental staff, as well as laboratory animal product distributors.

Work Performed

• Provides basic animal husbandry, handling, restraint, health, behavior and welfare surveillance of laboratory animals, along with continuous awareness of current species-specific welfare issues.
• Performs health checks on various laboratory animals and recording observations.
• Records and maintains animal data.
• Provides animal husbandry; this includes providing food, water, clean housing, and enrichment to animals, including changing animal cages and water bottles, operating a cage dumping station, a cage washer, a bottle filler, and a pass-through sterilizer.
• Maintains the facility’s cleanliness and organization, including routine sweeping and mopping of floors, as well as scheduled cleaning of rooms, vents, and cage racks.
• Maintains facility equipment as required on a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual basis.
• Provides medications to animals as per written instruction (such as eye drops, topical antibiotics, oral medications in food or water).
• Assists with the collection of biological samples.
• Assists with anesthesia, surgical and other procedures, under direct supervision.
• Receives, collects and records inventory of animals, food, bedding, and other supplies, repeatedly lifting up to 20kg.
• Participates in performing administrative operational functions including implementing CCAC recommendations at the direction of the Facility Manager and helping facility to meet CCAC standards/guidelines. Report any incomplete items for clarification or of concern.
• Provides feedback on building heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems and makes recommendations for adjustments.
• Responds to emergency calls as directed to by the manager.
• Assists with creating SOP’s by providing suggestions for changes and improvements and identifying and communicating possible workflow improvements.
• Performs other related tasks as required.

Consequence of Error/Judgement

Inappropriate judgement exercised by the position may impact the success of the facility, leading to increased expenses and time loss. Additionally, inappropriate judgement may also have detrimental consequences in regard to animal and human health and welfare.

Supervision Received

The position works collaboratively with other technicians, faculty, students and staff. The position reports to the Manager of UBCO Biosciences Facility Services UBC Okanagan.

Supervision Given

This position does not involve supervision, but the position involves reporting to the Team Lead and/or Facility Operations Manager any observations of facility users not following approved processes.

Qualifications

• Completion of Secondary School (Grade 12) or equivalent; up to 6 months of experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Registered Lab Animal Technician (CALAS/AALAS) certification an asset;
• An Animal Health Technology degree is an asset.
• Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one’s own
• Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one’s own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion
• Demonstrated ability in performing standard technical and related husbandry procedures on common species of laboratory animals.
• Ability to operate and maintain the instrumentation and equipment utilized in the animal facility.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a team environment as well as independently. Effective oral and written communication, interpersonal, organizational, problem solving and computer skills.
• The position is physically demanding and involves heavy lifting (up to 20 kg). The successful candidate would need to be capable of meeting the repetitive, physical requirements of the job.