Research Scientist 1 (Temporary)
Req #: | 179696 |
Department: | School of Medicine: Urology |
Appointing Department Web Address: | https://www.washington.edu/urology/ |
Job Location: | Seattle Campus |
Posting Date: | 06/05/2020 |
Closing Info: | Open Until Filled |
Salary: | Salary is Competitive. Salary is Commensurate Upon Qualifications and Experience. |
Shift: | First Shift |
At the University of Washington, diversity is integral to excellence. We value and honor diverse experiences and perspectives, strive to create welcoming and respectful learning environments, and promote access, opportunity and justice for all.
School of Medicine’s Department of Urology has an outstanding opportunity open for a Temporary Research Scientist 1.
The Temporary Research Scientist/Engineer 1 will facilitate several ongoing research projects spanning basic science studies and clinical medicine, and interactions with several University Departments (Urology, Medicine, and Pathology) as well as collaborations with the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. This person will work under limited supervision to complete assigned tasks/projects demonstrating an ability to work independently. Overall direction will be supplied by the Biorepository Manager in routine meetings. The employee will be responsible for following these general guidelines and for making adjustments to these directions as the need arises. The employee will represent the GU Research Laboratory in the Urology Clinic and assist with blood draws and biopsies.
Complexities
This position is in the Department of Urology's Genitourinary Cancer Research Laboratory, within the biospecimen acquisition and processing group. This position involves acquiring peripheral blood, tissue, tissue biopsies, and urine specimens from the operating room and the urology clinic (a tissue acquisition) and processing and storing the specimens according to protocol. Incumbents perform routine scientific work, collecting, processing, and applying standardized scientific procedures and techniques
Duties and Responsibilities
Works closely with Urology Clinic personnel, including physicians, nurses, and coordinators, to consent and collect research samples from patients:
• Screen clinic and surgery schedule for patients of interest and keep a running calendar of potential future collections.
• Evaluate personnel availability and sample utility with the Biorepository Manager and Team while discussing upcoming cases for collection.
• Utilize excellent people skills in communicating with patients and pay exceptional attention to detailed human subjects consent forms and clinical study protocols.
• Accommodate frequent changes in the clinic schedule, which will necessitate working a variable, on demand, schedule, and varying locations.
• Coordinate with providers to collect blood and tissue from patients for research, frequently in conjunction with clinical samples.
• Regularly abstract clinical data from patient charts and pair with collected samples in an electronic database.
• Critically evaluate upcoming study protocols to ensure details are clear and procedures are feasible.
Works closely with Department of Pathology personnel in the processing of specimens removed at surgery with the goal of tumor tissue acquisition:
• Master techniques of tumor dissection following training by the genitourinary pathologist.
• Utilize excellent eye-hand coordination in tissue dissection and pays exceptional attention to detailed protocols for tissue acquisition and processing.
• Accommodate frequent changes in the operating room schedule, which will necessitate working a variable, on demand, schedule, and varying locations.
Blood and Urine Collection and Processing:
• Use appropriate precautions while isolating serum, buffy coat and or plasma from blood specimens on a weekly basis.
• Extract cells from Urine on a weekly basis.
Perform Tissue Processing and Standard Histology:
• Using accepted methods and techniques in histology (fixing, decalcification, sectioning, and staining of tissue), solve well-defined problems and perform specific and limited portions of broader projects, under technical guidance of the Biorepository manager.
• There will be the need for the successful applicant to be sufficiently adept with these procedures so as to make modifications to suit the particular research study with minimal guidance from the supervisor.
• The person must be very attentive to detail and keep highly accurate records of specimens received and processed.
Collection and Documentation of Data:
• Collect, compile (e.g. entering data into Excel spreadsheet and generating graphs), and correlate data and recognize discrepancies in results. Also contribute data/findings for use in reports, documents or oral/written presentations.
• Demonstrate proficiency in data collection and input of data into Access databases. Complement these tasks with ability to run database queries to retrieve selected and sorted data.
Other Related Duties:
• Interact in a collaborative manner with other team members to accomplish organizational goals and provide ideas for improved efficiency. Define and improve practices from experiences on small projects.
• Extract pertinent clinical data from patient charts or pathology reports and perform statistical correlations to acquired experimental results.
• Rotate (every third week) as a leader of an on-call rapid autopsy Tissue Acquisition Necropsy (TAN) team. The TAN program necessitates that the applicant be in the laboratory within two hours of being paged. Each laboratory member participates in approximately 4-5 rapid autopsies per year.
• Contribute to the maintenance and organization of the Biospecimen freezers and Arrange occasional shipping of specimens to Study Sites.
• Learn new techniques as required for optimal job performance.
Perform other duties as assigned
Required Skills, Experience and Knowledge
• A Bachelor's degree in the basic biological sciences is required with an emphasis in one of the biology disciplines,
• Up to one year's experience in a related area; some or all may be in relevant educational programs
• Phlebotomy Licensure in the state of Washington
• Familiarity with spreadsheets and databases.
Desirable Skills, Experience and Knowledge
• Ability to generate tables and queries in Microsoft ACCESS is desirable.
• Experience in the handling and processing of human tissues and blood is highly desired but not a requirement.
Conditions of Employment
• Must be able to work under limited supervision to complete assigned tasks/projects and demonstrate an ability to work independently.
• This position requires flexibility in the working hours, including extension into the evening when processing of specimens mandate, and on occasion requires working outside of the standard workweek.
• This position is originally proposed for a nine (9) month Project Appointment, with the ability to be transitioned to a regular position based on funding availability.
Application Process:
The application process for UW positions may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process. These assessments may include Work Authorization, Cover Letter, and/or others. Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment you will be prompted to do so the next time you access your “My Jobs” page. If you select to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are ready. Please note that your application will not be reviewed, and you will not be considered for this position until all required assessments have been completed.
Committed to attracting and retaining a diverse staff, the University of Washington will honor your experiences, perspectives and unique identity. Together, our community strives to create and maintain working and learning environments that are inclusive, equitable and welcoming.
The University of Washington is a leader in environmental stewardship & sustainability, and committed to becoming climate neutral.
The University of Washington is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Disability Services Office at 206-543-6450 / 206-543-6452 (tty) or dso@uw.edu.