Veterinary Assistant

Petco Animal Supplies, Inc.; Oregon; On-site; USD 10,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a dedicated Veterinary Assistant to join their team. This role is pivotal in providing exceptional medical care to patients and outstanding customer service to their owners. The ideal candidate will assist veterinarians in various tasks, from patient care to maintaining medical records, ensuring a smooth operation within the veterinary hospital. With a focus on teamwork and compassion, this position offers the opportunity to make a significant impact on the well-being of animals and their families. If you are passionate about animal care and thrive in a collaborative environment, this role is perfect for you.

Qualifications

• Experience in veterinary practice or relatable animal care experience preferred.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills are a must.

Responsibilities

• Greet clients and patients, record vital signs, and assist with appointments.
• Perform patient restraint, collect lab samples, and manage medical records.

Skills

Veterinary Care

Communication Skills

Compassion and Sympathy

Teamwork

Problem Solving

Animal Care Experience

Education

1-year experience in veterinary practice

Tools

Electronic Medical Records (EMRs)

Computer Skills

Telephone Skills

Job description

The purpose of this position inherently involves providing excellent medical care to our Vetco Total Care full-service hospital patients and phenomenal customer care to their owners. The Veterinary Assistant represents the mission and values to all clients. Our Veterinary Assistants set the tone for the technical and customer support in the hospital, and are responsible, like all team members, for fostering cohesion and motivation within the practice.

All hospital staff are responsible for performing their duties in a way that creates an environment in which:

The patient’s needs always come first.

1. Every team member understands that they have the power to do what it takes to create an exceptional customer experience.
2. Contentious issues are dealt with and resolved as they occur when possible, or as soon as is possible.
3. Exceptional teamwork and commitment to shared goals benefits the entire organization.

Essential Job Functions

The incumbent must be able to perform all the following duties and responsibilities with or without reasonable accommodation:

1. Greet clients and patients arriving for appointments and escort them into an exam room, obtain weight and vital signs (temperature, pulse, respirations) and record the electronic medical record. Veterinary Assistants will collect thorough patient histories and document the patient visit in the EMRs.
2. Assist doctors with appointments (routine and emergency), surgery, dentistry, and euthanasia, under supervision from the veterinarian credentialed veterinary technician, HOM and HLOD.
3. Perform patient restraint, obtain and process laboratory samples, handle and dispense medications at the direction of the veterinarian and help maintain the electronic medical record.
4. Schedule appointments, provide client education, relay test results to doctor and clients, and maintain and update client/patient records.
5. Help prepare patients for surgical and dental procedures and assist doctor and/or veterinary technician in anesthetizing patients. Under supervision of the veterinarian and/or veterinary technician, assistants will maintain patients safely under anesthesia while monitoring vital parameters, help monitor patients during recovery and prepare them for hospital discharge or transfer to an overnight care facility.
6. Under supervision of the veterinarian and/or veterinary technician, perform in-hospital treatments for sick patients including giving injectable and oral medications as well as intravenous fluid therapy; keep patients clean, watered, and fed (when indicated and directed by doctor), safely walk canine patients when necessary for elimination.
7. Under direction of the HOM/HLOD, assist in the training of new staff members and general dissemination of knowledge as required.
8. Keep hospital environment neat and clean; perform regular cleaning of environment based on necessity as well as based on a pre-determined maintenance schedule.

Other Duties and Responsibilities

1. Perform additional duties as assigned.
2. Provide backup phone and front desk support as needed.

Nature of Supervision

In all activities related to the care of individual patients, the incumbent will take direct supervision from the veterinarians as well as the Veterinary Technician. For purposes of overall supervision, the incumbent takes direction from the HOM/HLOD or from the supervising technician for the shift.

Planning and Problem Solving

Like all team members, the Veterinary Assistant plays a crucial role in ensuring that day-to-day operation of the hospital is efficient and provides an optimal experience for our patients and clients.

Impact

This position will impact the organization by contributing to the growth of productive practice while focusing on a high-quality standard of care. From an overall hospital organizational standpoint, this position is critical to ensuring that we have a cohesive, well-trained, and motivated technical team. The desired end-result is the creation of an optimal environment that ensures employee retention, patient well-being, and customer satisfaction.

Supervisory Responsibility

This position has no immediate supervisory duties.

Education / Experience

1. Preferred to have at least 1-year previous experience working in veterinary practice or sufficient relatable animal care experience to ensure excellent performance at the above-listed skills.
2. Must have excellent written and verbal communication skills.
3. Must be compassionate and sympathetic, and be able to maintain a professional attitude and demeanor during emotional and stressful situations.
4. Must have telephone and computer skills.
5. Must be a team player willing to learn new techniques and treatments, offer creative ideas, and accept change.

The majority of job duties are conducted in the Veterinary Hospital. Position requires bending, kneeling, lifting (up to 30 pounds, as necessary) and standing for long periods of time. A large amount of this partner’s time will be spent in direct contact with clients and their pets.

Contacts

This position will regularly communicate with clients, veterinary specialists, and companies that provide products and/or services that the practice utilizes.