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Form of work
SalaryResearch Laboratory Assistant
- (3283020)
This person will be under the supervision of the Zebrafish Cooperative Directors and the Senior Research Technologist. He/she will assist with all aspects of the fish room facility to include feeding of zebrafish, cleaning fish rooms, preparing solutions, ordering, serving as a critical contact for vendors, organizing site visits for maintenance, training and educating trainees and staff with general husbandry, and other general aquaculture and system maintenance. Additionally, he/she will be responsible of performing bi-monthly animal health assessment, auditing tank use, and optimizing new feeding and husbandry strategies. Priority will be given to individuals who want to work a consistent work schedule, 20 to 40 hours/week, and requires covering feeding on Monday-Friday afternoons (2-5pm). Part-time work options available.
RESPONSIBILITIES
1. Feed live brine shrimp to 10000+ tanks of tropical fish using squeeze bottles.
2. Prepare brine shrimp for feeding.
3. Train new fishroom users including trainees and lab staff for feeding and preparation of brine shrimp and/or system maintenance, in anticipation of holiday coverage, vacation, sick time, and emergency situations.
4. Perform monthly audits of rack use per laboratory to assist in the billing.
5. Perform bi-monthly health assessments of the zebrafish colony, looking for signs of animal distress (gasping, erratic swimming, skin lesions, etc.).
6. Flagging dirty tanks for cleaning and notifying the users.
7. Report non-compliant users to the Zebrafish Cooperative Directors to limit access to the facility of those that follow the rules and regulations.
8. Optimizing feeding and husbandry experiments. This includes performing pilot experiments under the direction of the Zebrafish Cooperative Directors to raise rotifers and paramecia.
9. Serve as daily point of contact for vendors and laboratory members in the absence of the manager.
10. Show proficiency and ample expertise in monitoring and maintaining the system. In the event of detecting any alterations in the system (leakage, malfunction, alterations of biological parameters), must call the manager and follow his instructions to evaluate and repair any potential issues.
11. Check that tank lids are straight and water flow is on.
12. Clean brine shrimp hatching equipment, squeeze bottles and prep area.
13. Clean and change filters as needed.
14. Clean floors as needed.
15. Prepare stock solutions as needed.
REQUIRED SKILLS:
EXPERIENCE:
- Prior work with animals preferred, but not required.
EDUCATION:
- High school diploma, GED or equivalent required. Some college or Associate’s Degree preferred.
WORKING CONDITIONS:
- Closed room with rows of fish tanks from floor to ceiling kept at 80 degrees F.
- Constant background noise of water filtration system.
- Highly interactive environment with many users working in the space, often requiring coordination of bench space.
Massachusetts General Hospital is an Equal Opportunity Employer. By embracing diverse skills, perspectives and ideas, we chose to lead. Applications from protected veterans and individuals with disabilities are strongly encouraged.
