Sr Clinical Veterinarian

At Houston Methodist, the Sr Clinical Veterinarian position is responsible for advancing excellence in veterinary care by providing diagnostic and clinical veterinary care for laboratory animals maintained in support of the Houston Methodist (HM) research program. This position is a key position with the Comparative Medicine Program providing detailed regulatory oversight to ensure compliance with all federal regulations and guidelines pertaining to the use of laboratory animals, including the FDA Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) regulations. In this capacity, the Sr Clinical veterinarian position leads research protocol creation, IACUC protocol review and facilitates work on research protocols to ensure the humane treatment of animals. This position actively participates on the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, either as a voting or alternate veterinarian and serves as the liaison between CMP and the Office of Research Protection.

FLSA STATUS

Exempt

QUALIFICATIONS

EDUCATION

• Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from an accredited school of veterinary medicine

EXPERIENCE

• Eight years of experience in the field of Laboratory Animal Medicine

LICENSES AND CERTIFICATIONS

Required

• DVM - Doctor of Veterinary Medicine - State Licensure - Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation_PSV within 1 year and
• ACLAM - Certified American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ACLAM) - American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine_PSV

KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES

• Demonstrates the skills and competencies necessary to safely perform the assigned job, determined through on-going skills, competency assessments, and performance evaluations
• Sufficient proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing the English language necessary to perform the essential functions of this job, especially with regard to activities impacting patient or employee safety or security
• Ability to effectively communicate with patients, physicians, family members and co-workers in a manner consistent with a customer service focus and application of positive language principles
• People management abilities
• Expertise in laboratory animal medicine and veterinary medical knowledge
• Ability to serve in a leadership role
• Expert knowledge of laws, policies, and regulations governing the use of animals in research
• Excellent communication skills
• Strong organizational and problem-solving skills
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Demonstrates adaptability and flexibility in the face of changing demands

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

PEOPLE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Oversees training of principle investigators, graduate students and technicians in the humane care and use of laboratory animals. Provides detailed oversight and guidance to the technical veterinary personnel and animal care staff.
• Exercises strong leadership skills to foster a team environment that demonstrates respect for every member of the department and promotes employee engagement and retention.
• Drives initiatives towards improvement of department scores for employee engagement, i.e. peer-to-peer accountability.

SERVICE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Establishes and implements a comprehensive clinical program for all animals used in research and teaching, including sentinel and quarantine programs, vendor screening, oversight of animal import and export, and diagnostics.
• Actively manages special services offered by the department such as surgical service, rederivation, biosecurity and post-approval monitoring as assigned to ensure a high level of quality and and an investigator (customer) service focus.
• Actively participates on the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, either as a voting or alternate veterinarian. Serves as the liaison between CMP and the Office of Research Protection.

QUALITY/SAFETY ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Oversees the preventive medicine and enrichment programs for animals used in research and teaching.
• Performs veterinary pre-review of animal use protocols to ensure compliance with high quality animal care and animal welfare regulations and provides assistance to investigators with protocol development.
• Oversees documentation, SOP and policy development, record review, and QC monitoring of research projects within the animal facilities to ensure adherence to federal regulations and guidelines.

FINANCE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Oversees the distribution and accounting of controlled substances in accordance with HMRI and DEA regulations.
• Ensures cost recovery of billable time and supplies expended in support of research projects.
• Utilizes resources with cost effectiveness and value creation in mind. Identifies cost saving initiatives within the department and communicates recommendations.

GROWTH/INNOVATION ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Investigates evidence-based solutions to clinical and research problems and publishes the results in peer reviewed journals.
• Activity participates on the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee either as a voting or alternate veterinarian and as the liaison between CMP and the Office of Research Protection.
• Contributes to the academic advancement of laboratory animal medicine by publishing in peer-reviewed journals, presenting at national meetings, or performing professional service that advances laboratory animal medicine. Completes and updates the My Development Plan on an on-going basis.

SUPPLEMENTAL REQUIREMENTS

WORK ATTIRE

• Uniform: No
• Scrubs: No
• Business professional: Yes
• Other (department approved): No

ON-CALLNote that employees may be required to be on-call during emergencies (ie. Disaster, Severe Weather Events, etc) regardless of selection below.

• On Call* Yes

TRAVELTravel specifications may vary by department

• May require travel within the Houston Metropolitan area Yes
• May require travel outside Houston Metropolitan area Yes

QUALIFICATIONS

EDUCATION

• Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from an accredited school of veterinary medicine

EXPERIENCE

• Eight years of experience in the field of Laboratory Animal Medicine

LICENSES AND CERTIFICATIONS

Required

• DVM - Doctor of Veterinary Medicine - State Licensure - Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation_PSV within 1 year and
• ACLAM - Certified American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ACLAM) - American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine_PSV

Company Profile:

Houston Methodist Academic Institute oversees the Education Institute and Research Institute. The Academic Institute aligns our research and education initiatives in service to the clinical mission, providing solutions that answer the call for new technologies and skills our clinicians need for patient care. Houston Methodist Education Institute coordinates our primary academic affiliation with Weill Cornell Medicine and other joint programs, including the Engineering Medicine Program at Texas A&M University Intercollegiate School of Engineering Medicine. The Education Institute also oversees continuing medical education and graduate medical education, and supports trainees in residence for medical, nursing, allied health and research education programs. Houston Methodist Research Institute supports research programs and infrastructure that enable faculty across the system to bring new scientific discoveries to patients as rapidly as possible through the full cycle of a cure from conceptual bench research, to prototyping and development, to clinical trials and FDA approval. The Research Institute supports clinical research protocols and extramurally funded translational research programs.

Houston Methodist is an Equal Opportunity Employer.