Veterinary Assistant

**Canada West Veterinary Specialists** is an exciting multi-disciplinary specialty referral practice with a dedicated 24-hour ERCC service. We are a certified Level II Veterinary Trauma center as designated per the Veterinary Committee on Trauma (VetCOT). We have 6 specialty departments, including Oncology, Neurology, Diagnostic Imaging, Surgery and, Internal Medicine with added services of Rehabilitation therapy and an in-house lab.

With a team of just over 180 staff members we are a group of dedicated and diverse individuals passionate about working together to provide the best patient care and client satisfaction.

**JOIN US?** Although a busy hospital we take pride in our staff and focus on providing a safe and fun place to build a career.

**BENEFITS**:

- We grow together with our monthly in-house Continuing Education presentations
- Subsidized extended health benefits
- 5 paid sick days per year
- Uniform allowance
- Wellness Spending account
- We believe in your well-being and provide a company sponsored Employee Assistance Program (EAP) enabling access to caring professionals that can help access support related to fitness, physical health and mental well-being programs.
- We provide employer paid Pet insurance to our employees.
- We believe in recognizing our staff with an anniversary recognition program.
- We have a profit-sharing program to recognize our staff’s contributions for our success.
- We have fun together with our hospital sponsored social events like; having Food Trucks visit us onsite, Halloween pumpkin carving contests, Annual Christmas Party, Pub Nights, etc.

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**DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES**
- Perform pre-surgical preparation of patients, instruments and equipment.
- Preparation of patients and ORs for surgery using sterile techniques (scrubbing, opening instruments etc.)
- Scrubbing to assist in draping patients as well as assisting the surgeon in a multitude of different surgical procedures.
- Obtain a good understanding of surgical procedures and ability to anticipate the needs of the surgeon.
- Ensures cleaning and sterilization equipment is properly maintained and documented.
- Responsible for keeping instruments and operating theatre areas clean and organized.
- Assists with and/or performs radiographs on surgical patients.
- Ability to remember the required instruments for individual packs, instrument location, and the specific needs of individual surgeons.
- Ability to focus on complex tasks while working in stressful environments.
- Assists in patient restraint so that procedures can be performed effectively by the surgeon or technician.
- Ensures supply inventory is sufficient to meet the demands of the Service.
- Perform basic patient care (Ensure patient is comfortable, walking the patient, cleaning kennels)
- Greet and offer assistance to clients.
- Responsible for ensuring daily communication with clients as well as facilitating communication between clients and hospital medical team.
- Willing to go above and beyond to exceed client expectations.
- Performs other duties as required.

**KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE**
- Knowledge of equipment maintenance procedures and necessary documentation required.
- Good understanding of radiation safety, patient positioning, and radiographic techniques.
- Strong attention to detail
- Ability to work in high-paced environment.
- Ability to recognize and establish priorities.
- Strong organizational skills and excellent memory.
- Ability to remain calm and act efficiently in an emergency.
- High level of professionalism.
- Excellent communication skills.

**QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE**
- Graduate of a Veterinary Assistant program, or equivalent experience.
- Customer service experience is an asset.

**WORKING HOURS**
- Rotational shifts comprising of 4*10’s
- Rotational On-Call Shifts on Saturdays
- All rotations are to be evenly shared amongst the surgical assistant team.

**Job Types**: Full-time, Permanent

Pay: $21.00-$26.00 per hour

**Benefits**:

- Casual dress
- Company events
- Dental care
- Discounted or free food
- Employee assistance program
- Extended health care
- On-site parking
- Paid time off
- Vision care

**Experience**:

- Veterinary Assistant: 1 year (preferred)

Work Location: In person