S UMMARY OF J OB P URPOSE AND F UNCTION:

The Veterinary Assistant supports the veterinarians and veterinary technicians in ensuring q uality veterinary care for all p ets, advocates for p ets, educates clients on all aspects of p et health, and ensures a safe and effective hospital environment.

E SSENTIAL R ESPONSIBILITIES AND T ASKS:

Live and exemplify the Five Principles of Mars, Inc. within self and team.

​ Act as the extra eyes, ears and hands for the veterinarian and veterinary technician to ensure the best quality p et care and to maximize the veterinarian's and veterinary technician’s produc tivity. C ommunicate with veterinarian, veterinary technicians and all other associate s to maintain the flow of patients.

Provide professional, efficient and exceptional service at all times. This includes performing or preparing procedures that do not req uire veterinarian or veterinary technician assistance, completing preparatory work for other procedures, ensuring that clients and p ets are comfortable in the hospital, and monitoring hospitalized or surgical p ets as allowed in the state practice acts .

Educate clients about Optimum Wellness Plans, preventive care, p et health needs, hospital services and other issues.

Obtain relevant information and history from clients and maintain proper and complete medical charts.

Ensure the safety of p ets, clients a nd associate s by utilizing safe restraining techniques, following standard protocols, and maintaining clean, sterile and organized treatment areas, exam rooms and labs.

Assist with surgery as applicable.

Utilize technical skills to the fullest, within stat e practice acts and as outlined in the NAVTA guidelines for veterinary assistant skills and duties.

Mentor other paraprofessionals in the hospital.

Other job duties as assigned.

C APABILITIES AND E XPERIENCE:

Ability to multi - task - Manages multiple tasks at one time; quickly and accurately shifts attention among multiple tasks under distracting conditions without loss of accurac y or appearance of frustration.

Communication skills - Reads, writes and speaks fluent English, using appro priate grammar, style and vocabulary. Correctly spells commonly used English words and job specific terms. Demonstrates exceptionally strong written and verbal communication skills.

Organizational ability – Demonstrates a systematic approach in carryin g out assignments. Is very orderly and excels at cutting through confusion and turning chaos into order.

Problem solving skills - Demonstrates a strong ability to identify, analyze and solve problems. Translates problems into practical solutions.

Clien t service skills - Consistently ensures the team provides the client with attentive, courteous and informative service. Gains and shows personal satisfaction from delivering great service.

Intellectual ability - Accurately and consistently follows instruc tions delivered in an oral, written or diagram format. Can provide directions.

Mathematical ability - Ability to add, subtract, multiply and divide, and to compute rate, ratio and percent; ability to convert units of measurement.

Computer skills - Comfor tably and confidently uses a computer and specialized medical software, as well as Microsoft Outlook, Word and Excel.

S PECIAL W ORKING C ONDITIONS:

Ability to work at a computer for long periods of time.

Ability to be confident around p ets (i.e., dogs, cats, birds, reptiles, etc.)  Client needs and work volume may often require more than 40 hours per week to complete essential duties of this job. This position requires special hours including working weekends and evenin gs.

Must have mental processes for reasoning, remembering, mathematics and language ability (reading, writing, and speaking the English language) to perform the duties proficiently.

The noise level in the work environment is moderately high.

Requires sufficient ambulatory skills in order to perform duties while at hospital.

Ability to stand, walk, stoop, kneel, crouch, and climb as well as manipulate (lift, carry, move) up to 50 pounds .

Requires good hand - eye coordination, arm - hand - finger dexterity with the ability to grasp, and visual acuity to use a keyboard and operate equipment.

Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

Asso ciate is routinely exposed to a variety of p ets that may bite or scratch, and on occasion, exposed to anesthesia, radiation, biological hazards and medication/controlled substances.