Senior Technician - Lab Services (Histology & Pathology)

About the role

Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine (RUSVM), part of Covista, is hiring a Senior Laboratory Services Technician for its Histology and Pathology sections. The position sits in the Biomedical Sciences Department and reports directly to the Histology Laboratory Manager with a dotted line to the Pathology Laboratory Manager. The school operates on a hybrid schedule with four in-office days per week (Monday to Thursday).

Key responsibilities

• Retrieve specimens for processing from the veterinary clinic, postmortem trim room, research principal investigators and the diagnostic lab.
• Perform histology tasks: ink and describe surgical biopsies, trim and embed tissue, cut sections on a microtome, rehydrate slides, stain routine H&E and special stains, and mount sections on microscope slides.
• Check quality-control slides, cut paraffin scrolls for PCR, dehydrate slides for cover slipping, decalcify calcified tissue, and maintain block storage.
• Support pathology: help organise autopsy classes, assist pathologists with post-mortem procedures, liaise with the clinic and the community for specimen collection, and prepare animals, tables and instruments for autopsies.
• Store samples in formalin or solution, submit specimens for bacteriology, clinical pathology, toxicology and histopathology, archive autopsy photos and reports, and dissect specimens in the teaching programme (training provided).
• Coordinate incineration and disposal of biohazard waste, package microscope slides for the university's contribution to the Joint Pathology Centre, and manage requests for external testing.
• Manage inventory, including purchase orders via SIMMS software, stock taking and budget preparation assistance.
• Maintain solutions and reagents according to SOPs, keep MSDS up to date, operate and maintain laboratory equipment, clean laboratory spaces and cold rooms/freezers, and use the LIMS system VADDS for case entry, test ordering and invoicing.
• May assist in teaching laboratory subjects to students and guide them in good laboratory practice.