Veterinary Assistant - Full Time

Whitesburg Animal Hospital is looking for a skilled and motivated veterinary assistant to join our team. Established in 1985 and led by Medical Director Dr. Staci Armstrong, the hospital is a 4-doctor hospital with an exceptional clinical team to take care of Huntsville's pets. Our support staff works together as a team to reach our goals as a hospital - patient care is number one!  The team services dogs, cats, and some exotics in the Greater Huntsville area and we take pride in knowing we practice great medicine! This is an excellent location to learn and grow in veterinary medicine.

Whitesburg is a fear-free facility and AAHA Accredited.

As a member of our team, you will have the opportunity to be directly involved in patient care, diagnostics, client education and surgical procedures. If you love pets and want to grow with our organization, please apply here!

Benefits:

Uniform allowance, pet service discounts, health, vision, dental, life, AD&D, short- and long-term disability, 401k contribution, and more!

Essential Functions:

• Provide compassionate care to all patients
• Greet patients and their owners in the examining room, taking the patient's weight and other vital signs upon arrival
• Administer medication as directed by the licensed veterinary technicians (LVT's) and doctors.
• Calm and soothe anxious patients
• Assist doctors and technicians with patient restraint
• Perform laboratory tests and take radiographs
• Operate and maintain hospital equipment, including EKG, fluid pump, scales, anesthetic monitors, and machines, etc.
• Fill prescriptions, calculate and administer medications, maintain proper documentation, logging, and security of controlled drugs.
• Communicate in a positive manner with clients and ensure that they feel comfortable leaving their pet(s)
• Educate clients about wellness and medicinal plans
• Maintain the cleanliness of the hospital each day
• Adhere to the hospital's safety and wellness regulations
• Understand and carry out oral and written directions
• Maintain accurate medical records (paper light)
• Show up for work regularly; full-time presence at work is essential for every shift
• Promote hospital products and services and support the organization
• Respond respectfully with urgency to directions given by Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM), Licensed Veterinary Technicians (LVT), and Hospital Manager.
• Perform any other duties as assigned by the Manager; may have other assigned duties if working in a specialty area (i.e., dentistry, surgery, emergency, radiology, cardiology, neurology, internal medicine, etc.)

Competencies:

• Care and Compassion – displays a desire to build rapport, provide personal assistance, and emotional support
• Animal Restraint and Safety – uses sound judgment when handling patients and always takes appropriate precautionary steps when needed
• Communication – uses effective and appropriate methods of interacting with others
• Team Orientation – works cooperatively with the team to address tasks and accomplish goals
• Dependability – demonstrates responsibility in completing all job tasks
• Cleanliness Standards – consistently follows sanitization and sterilization policies and procedures
• Energy and Productivity – completes tasks quickly and thoroughly without prompting
• Time Management – manages time and prioritizes work tasks effectively
• Technical Skills and Learning – keeps up-to-date with new technical skills and knowledge in the field
• Care and Use of Equipment – takes appropriate steps to perform operation checks and maintenance of equipment

Qualifications:

• High school diploma or equivalent
• One or more years' experience in a veterinary environment successfully performing all of the duties of this position
• Experience with surgical monitoring, radiology, dental prophylaxis, and client education preferred
• May consider an equivalent combination of education, certification, training, and/or experience

Position Requirements:

• Maintains current knowledge in the field of expertise and actively seeks opportunities for continuing education and skill improvement.
• Ability to restrain animals, fill prescriptions, and monitor sedation procedures
• Ability to work with or around sick animals, potentially hazardous materials, cleaning chemicals, gas anesthetics, zoonotic diseases, and unpleasant odors
• Requires knowledge of hospital procedures, policies, and services; client and patient treatment protocols; hospital computer systems; and the standard procedures, records, and terminology used in a veterinary hospital.
• Must be flexible with scheduling and able to work some weekends and holidays
• Depending on the functional area of assignment, tasks may involve extended periods of time at a keyboard or workstation and/or extended periods of time standing and/or walking.
• This is a strenuous job that requires a lot of lifting, cleaning, and constant motion. May involve some climbing, balancing, stooping, kneeling, crouching, or crawling
• Some tasks involve the periodic performance of moderately physically demanding work, usually involving lifting or carrying moderately heavy animals (up to 50 pounds)

Additional Information: The list of essential functions, as outlined in this job description, is intended to be representative of the tasks performed within this classification. The omission of any job function does not preclude management from assigning duties not listed herein if such functions are a logical assignment to the position.