Biological Scientist Iii - 42000929 1

Requisition No: 817632 

Agency: Agriculture and Consumer Services

Working Title: BIOLOGICAL SCIENTIST III - 42000929 1

 Pay Plan: Career Service

Position Number: 42000929 

Salary:  $40,351.04 - $50,000.08 

Posting Closing Date: 12/12/2023 

Total Compensation Estimator Tool

BIOLOGICAL SCIENTIST III

FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND CONSUMER SERVICES

DIVISION OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY

 ***OPEN COMPETITIVE OPPORTUNITY ***

CONTACT:

Dr. Maldonado, (321) 697-1408

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:

A bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with a major in biological, physical, natural, or agricultural sciences and two (2) years of related professional experience; or

A master's degree from an accredited college or university as described above and one (1) year of related professional experience as described above; or

A doctorate from an accredited college or university as described above. 

Certain positions within this class require individuals to meet specific federal or state regulations as identified by the employing agency.

Requires possession of a valid driver license.

Please Note: There will be a numerically based work sample administered with an established minimum required passing score to all eligible candidates as part of the hiring process for this position.

***ATTENTION CANDIDATES***

To be considered for a position with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services:

• All fields in the Candidate Profile must be completed (an attached resume is not a substitution for the information required on the candidate profile).
• Work history, duties and responsibilities, hours worked, supervisor, and formal education fields, etc. must be filled out to determine qualifications for this position.
• Responses to Qualifying Questions must be verifiable in the Candidate Profile.

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services values
and supports employment of individuals with disabilities. Qualified
individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

Occasional travel required.

Incumbent must pass a pulmonary function test with medical evaluation, must undergo and pass regular respirator fit-testing, and must wear a respirator when required.  Will be subject to the requirements of the proper use of appropriate respirator.

JOB DUTIES:

The incumbent will work with all Veterinarian Pathologists to coordinate scheduling, organization, and tracking of daily tasks including but not limited to necropsy submissions, client requests, subcontracting of services to third-party diagnostic laboratories, and coordination of ancillary testing.  Tracks replies, and triages phone calls from multiple clients including veterinary practitioners, animal owners and producers, and regulatory officials. Keeps a log of daily necropsy submissions, identifies, tracks, and follows up on priority submissions.  Assists the necropsy section head in the organization and execution of multiple technical, managerial, and diagnostic tasks.  Responsible for organizing, updating and filing of a variety of necropsy records and spreadsheets to include forensic, racetrack and NAHRS reports. Monitors the crematorium operations including but not limited to crematorium loading, tracking of the burn, closely monitoring of the panel, and the burn chart. Keeps open communications with the Maintenance Department to ensure the proper and timely fix and maintenance of equipment in the necropsy section. Assists with loading, emptying, and starting the crematory.  Assists the necropsy personnel with cleaning, sanitation, and disinfection of the necropsy room to include, walk-in cooler, freezers, refrigerator and equipment.

Assist duty veterinarian by performing gross assessment of necropsy submissions, and the associated documentation and records.  As a trained professional in animal gross anatomical procedures, the incumbent will perform basic gross postmortem procedures including carcass dismembering, dissection, sample collection, sample labeling, distribution and photographic recording of a variety of animal species. Assists the duty veterinarian with animal euthanasia, loads and operates hoist for large animal carcasses. Provides rapid notification of reportable disease results to the Necropsy Section Head, and necropsy duty veterinarian.  Maintains working knowledge of the Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) and utilizes this tool for case coordination. Consults with in-house pathologists, professional laboratory staff, as well as National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) and university pathologists, to enhance diagnostic skills.  Maintains good open lines of communication with clients and other agencies that use the laboratory as a resource.  Keeps track of necropsy reports generated by the veterinarians and ensures that data is generated for additional testing.

In coordination with the Quality Assurance personnel, the incumbent will assist the Necropsy Section Head to ensure the section maintains and exceeds quality standards within the quality system of the necropsy section.  This position will work towards making improvements within the overall quality system in the necropsy section and ensures that appropriate quality control methods are followed and maintained.  Monitors and resolves sample quality issues and performs testing troubleshooting and problem-solving.  Assists with quality assurance projects including revision, and review of standard operating procedures (SOPs), initiation and follow-up of non-conformances, corrective actions, and customer complaints  Ensures that personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements are met, and all safety procedures are followed in the areas in which necropsy personnel works. The incumbent will possess a thorough understanding and usage of USALIMS and Q-Pulse software to perform above mentioned tasks. Assists by gathering data necessary to generate the necropsy's Management review document.

Monitors inventory for supplies, equipment, and materials in areas of operation.  Ensures adequate supply of time-sensitive materials and monitors expiration dates.  Ensures that procurement orders are initiated in a timely manner to maintain adequate stock to prevent complete depletion, and tracks the invoicing, and associated billing documents for send out submissions, and purchasing in general.

Provides a variety of assigned written reports utilizing a personal computer.  Maintains data and statistics for assigned areas in a contemporaneous fashion to ensure data is readily available when leadership requests are received.

Performs other related duties as assigned.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Ability to lift and carry up to 50 pounds.
• Knowledge of animal diseases.
• Knowledge in anatomy of domestic and exotic animal species.
• Knowledge of animal husbandry practices of different species.
• Ability to identify gross lesions in animal tissues.
• Ability to describe gross lesions, write gross reports, and formulate morphologic diagnoses.

The Benefits of Working for the State of Florida

Working for the State of Florida is more than a paycheck.  The State's total compensation package for employees features a highly competitive set of employee benefits including:

• Annual and Sick Leave benefits;
• Nine paid holidays and one Personal holiday each year;
• State Group Insurance coverage options, including health, life, dental, vision and other supplemental insurance options;
• Retirement plan options, including employer contributions (For more information, please visit www.myfrs.com;)
• Flexible Spending Accounts;
• Tuition waivers;
• And more!

For a complete list of benefits, visit www.mybenefits.myflorida.com.

For an estimate of the total compensation package for this position, please visit the "Total Compensation Estimator Tool" located above under the "Posting Closing Date."

SPECIAL NOTES:

The State of Florida is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Affirmative Action Employer, and does not tolerate discrimination or violence in the workplace.

Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center (1-866-663-4735). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.

VETERANS' PREFERENCE.  Pursuant to Chapter 295, Florida Statutes, candidates eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive preference in employment for Career Service vacancies and are encouraged to apply.  Certain service members may be eligible to receive waivers for postsecondary educational requirements.  Candidates claiming Veterans' Preference must attach supporting documentation with each submission that includes character of service (for example, DD Form 214 Member Copy #4) along with any other documentation as required by Rule 55A-7, Florida Administrative Code.  Veterans' Preference documentation requirements are available by clicking here.  All documentation is due by the close of the vacancy announcement.