Vet Tech III Lerner Clinic

About the Clinic

The Luke and Lily Lerner Clinic provides students at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine with opportunities for both pre-clinical and clinical surgical training while serving pets and people in need. The Clinic offers high-level primary care surgery to shelter and community animals and trains veterinary students in the clinical competencies needed for anesthesia and surgery of healthy feline and canine patients.

The pre-clinical surgical training program in Lerner Clinic is Introduction to Anesthesia and Small Animal Surgical Techniques (ISAAST), a required class for all third-year students. Lerner Clinic also offers a fourth-year clinical elective, Primary Care Procedures (PCP), focusing on spay/neuter surgery, other primary care surgery, anesthesia, and dentistry. Additionally, the clinic hosts periodic Community Cat Clinics and assists with dental training labs and other clinical skills laboratories.

Responsibilities

• Technical Support:
  • Provide advanced, high-quality technical and anesthesia support for all Lerner programs, emphasizing patient safety and smooth daily operations.
  • Monitor, manage, and implement anesthetic and analgesic plans. Work independently and collaborate with faculty to adjust protocols based on patient status.
  • Perform advanced technical tasks such as IV catheterization, induction and airway management, comprehensive anesthetic monitoring, perioperative analgesia, and fluid therapy setup and monitoring.
  • Coordinate daily OR flow, room turnover, instrument care, and readiness of anesthetic, surgical, and dental equipment.
  • Monitor controlled substance handling and record-keeping. Collaborate with the Clinic Administrator to ensure logs are maintained and audited appropriately.
  • Triage patients for sedation or anesthesia, identify risks, and escalate appropriately. Induce and monitor anesthesia directly or coach students in doing so.
  • Help organize and deliver ISAAST instruction and provide hands-on technical support for advanced anesthesia concerns for ISAAST patients.
  • Independently initiate steps to perform CPR in the absence of an attending veterinarian.
• Teaching:
  • Deliver hands-on instruction in anesthesia, surgical preparation and sterility, and dentistry for ISAAST and the Primary Care Procedures rotations.
  • Reinforce didactic material during ISAAST and PCP. Assist faculty with preparation and delivery of introductory materials.
  • Teach veterinary and technician students in technical and nursing care, including examinations, venipuncture, IV catheter placement, intubation, anesthesia monitoring, husbandry, and behavior evaluation.
  • Contribute to and participate in formal continuing education (CE) when requested.
• Leadership:
  • Coach and mentor junior staff and provide on-the-job training to new technicians.
  • Mentor students in ISAAST and PCP in advanced anesthesia knowledge and technical skills.
  • Coordinate daily OR flow, demonstrating excellent leadership skills, resourcefulness, and self-accountability.
• Maintenance:
  • Maintain adequate inventory of medical supplies and pharmaceuticals.
  • Clean and maintain assigned clinical areas.
  • Facilitate the maintenance of clinical equipment by identifying malfunctioning equipment and scheduling service.

Requirements

• Minimum of 3 years of experience as a certified veterinary technician in a university hospital or similar environment, functioning at a level consistent with a Vet Tech II.
• Experience with Microsoft Office and electronic medical record systems.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently on complex tasks with minimal supervision.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills to work effectively on a diverse clinical team.
• Excellent understanding of medical terminology and veterinary pharmacology, including identification of adverse drug reactions and ability to address patient anesthetic complications.
• Demonstrated ability to provide exceptional service to internal and external customers and to instruct students.
• Ability to independently initiate steps to perform CPR in the absence of an attending veterinarian.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Associate’s Degree in Veterinary Technology.
• Passion for primary care education and community service.
• Veterinary Technician Specialist Certification.
• Certified Advanced Life Support (RECOVER basic certification).
• Fear Free Certified (level 1 certification).
• Valid driver’s license.

Pay

Pay Range: Minimum $27.85, Midpoint $33.15, Maximum $38.50. Salary is based on related experience, expertise, and internal equity; generally, new hires can expect pay between the minimum and midpoint of the range.