Principal Microbiologist (35 Hour) (Office/On-site)
Full Time
Rocky Hill, CT
Posted
Job description
The State of Connecticut,
Department of Public Health
is hiring!
The State of Connecticut, Department of Public Health (DPH) is seeking an experience and qualified individual for the position of
Principal Microbiologist. This position will be located at the CT DPH State Public Health Laboratory, offering exciting opportunities for career development and growth! See below for additional information on this opportunity!
GENERAL HIGHLIGHTS:
- Work Schedule: Typically Monday - Friday
- Work Hours: Full-time (35 hours per week), First shift
- There may be opportunities for an alternate work schedule and working remotely in accordance with State policies.
- Location: Dr. Katherine A. Kelley State Public Health Laboratory, Rocky Hill, CT
WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU:
- To work for a Forbes top company; ‘Forbes’ State of Connecticut Ranked One of the Best Employers of 2023 - State of CT Receives National Recognition for Offering Job Growth, Competitive Benefits, and Flexible Schedule;
- Comprehensive Benefits which including industry leading health benefits, including medical and dental coverage;
- Extensive pension plan and supplemental retirement offeringsl
- Retirement healthcare offerings;
- Accrued vacation, personal, and sick leave;
- 13 paid holidays per calendar year;
- Professional growth and development opportunities; and
- Outstanding work-life balance!
POSITION DETAILS:
This position requires experience working with BSL-3 agents and successful completion of an FBI background check, as well as extensive Select Agent safety training. The Principal Microbiologist is responsible for performing molecular and conventional microbiological testing of suspect bioterrorism agents on both clinical and environmental samples and acting as the liaison between the BioResponse Laboratory and Epidemiology, FBI, law enforcement, Local Health, and hospital laboratory partners. The Principal Microbiologist will be expected to work independently and communicate effectively with all partners in the absence of the Supervising Microbiologist. In addition, this role will require performance of the enteric bacterial isolate identification and emerging infectious disease pathogens and working closely with State Epidemiology, Food Protection Program and Local Health in outbreak investigations. The Principal Microbiologist must also assist with antimicrobial susceptibility testing to assure accuracy and timeliness of reporting of this critically important area of the laboratory.
RESPONSIBILITIES OF THIS ROLE INCLUDE:
- Detection and identification of Bacillus anthracis, Yersinia pestis, Francisella tularensis, Burkholderia species, Coxiella burnetii, Smallpox virus, Ebola Zairevirus and Ebola Sudanvirus by both conventional and molecular methods in both environmental and clinical samples
- Conventional typing of Shigella species, shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli (STEC)
- Identification methods for Salmonella species, Vibrio species, Campylobacter species, and organisms submitted for antibiotic susceptibility testing
- Norovirus PCR detection, STEC PCR and antimicrobial susceptibility testing of clinical isolates
- Shipping of bacterial isolates or specimens as required for National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) or CaliciNet activities
- Performing validations on new methods and writing Standard Operating Procedures
MORE ABOUT THE AGENCY:
The Mission of the Department of Public Health (DPH) is to protect and improve the health and safety of the people of Connecticut by:
- Assuring the conditions in which people can be healthy
- Preventing disease, injury, and disability
- Promoting the equal enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health, which is a human right and a priority of the state.
DPH accomplishes this through the implementation of its Strategic Plan which outlines the actions that DPH is taking to accomplish its Mission.
The Dr. Katherine A. Kelley State Public Health Laboratory serves all communities in the state through the analysis of clinical specimens and environmental samples submitted by federal and state agencies, local health departments and districts, clinical laboratories, health care providers, and water utilities. The Laboratory provides over 2 million test results on approximately 250,000 specimens and samples it receives each year. Analytical data are used to monitor for agents harmful to the public health, identify the causes of outbreaks of disease, and assure that control measures (e.g., vaccines, antibiotics, environmental remediation, etc.) are effective.
Selection Plan
FOR ASSISTANCE IN APPLYING:
Please visit our 'Applicant Tips on How to Apply' page.
This position may be subject to Federal requirements for COVID 19 Vaccination Immunization.
To Apply:
- In order to be considered for this job opening, you must meet the Minimum Qualifications as listed on the job opening. The minimum experience and training requirements must be met by the close date on the job opening, unless otherwise specified.
- You must specify your qualifications on your application. You will be unable to make revisions once you submit your application for this posting to the JobAps system.
- In order to comply with Public Act 21-69, the State of Connecticut is no longer asking for resumes during the initial application process.
- All application materials must be received by the recruiting agency by the time specified on the job opening for the position for which you are applying. Late applications may not be submitted and will not be considered. Exceptions are rare and limited to documented events that incapacitate a candidate during the entire duration of the job posting time period. It is the candidate’s obligation and responsibility to request an exception and provide a legally recognized justification to accommodate such exception. Requests should be made to DAS.SHRM@ct.gov.
- This position will be filled in accordance with contractual language, reemployment, SEBAC, transfer, promotion and merit employment rules.
Important Next Step Information for After You Apply:
- Although applicants will receive correspondence via email, as a backup they are also encouraged to sign on to their Personal Status Board on a daily basis to monitor their status, view all emailed notices and complete tasks required in the recruitment process.
- This posting may require completion of additional referral questions (RQs). You can access these RQs via an email that will be sent to you after the posting's closing date or by visiting your JobAps Personal Status Board (Certification Questionnaires section). Your responses to these RQs must be submitted by the question's expiration date. Please regularly check your email and JobAps Personal Status Board for notifications. Please check your SPAM and/or Junk folders on a daily basis in the event an email provider places auto-notification emails in a user's spam.
- Note: At any point during the recruitment process, applicants may be required to submit additional documentation which support their qualification(s) for this position. These documents may include: a cover letter, resume, transcripts, diplomas, performance reviews, attendance records, supervisory references, licensure, etc., at the discretion of the hiring agency.
- The immediate vacancy is listed above, however, applications to this recruitment may be used for future vacancies in this job class.
- Interviews will be limited to candidates whose experience and training most closely meet the requirements of the position.
- Candidates who are offered and accept a position with the State of Connecticut are bound by the State Code of Ethics for Public Officials and State Employees which is available at www.ct.gov/ethics.
Connect With Us:
- Due to the large volume of applications received, we are unable to provide confirmation of receipt or status during the recruitment process.
- Updates will be available through your JobAps portal account. If you have any questions pertaining to this recruitment please contact Alyssa Hovanec via email at Alyssa.Hovanec@ct.gov.
PURPOSE OF JOB CLASS (NATURE OF WORK)
In the Department of Public Health this class is accountable for acting as a working supervisor responsible for a large and/or complex grouping of work in a laboratory.
EXAMPLES OF DUTIES
- Plans unit workflow and determines priorities;
- Schedules, assigns, oversees and reviews work;
- Establishes and maintains unit procedures;
- Provides staff training and assistance;
- Conducts or assists in conducting performance evaluations;
- Acts as liaison with other operating units, agencies and outside officials regarding unit policies and procedures;
- Conducts complex or specialized as well as routine microbiological, biomedical, molecular and biochemical analysis as necessary to ensure prompt processing of specimens;
- Maintains quality assurance programs;
- Prepares and maintains records, reports and correspondence;
- Processes specimens under chain-of-custody;
- Maintains knowledge of current developments and changes in field of expertise;
- Oversees the use of and utilizes universal laboratory precautions;
- Utilizes computers to operate and maintain instrumentation and to access, interpret, modify and report test results;
- Acts for Supervising Microbiologist in his or her absence;
- May be responsible for leading staff and a variety of activities outside normal working hours;
- May make recommendations on policies or standards;
- May testify in court;
- Performs related duties as required.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILL AND ABILITY
- Considerable knowledge of
- current theories, principles and practices of biomedical sciences and microbiological disciplines including bacteriology, parasitology, virology and others as they relate to public health;
- current laboratory methods, equipment, instrumentation and material;
- quality assurance and quality control policies and procedures;
- Knowledge of
- universal laboratory precautions;
- common statistical techniques and ability to make sophisticated calculations;
- Considerable Skills
- interpersonal skills;
- oral and written communication skills;
- Ability to
- perform advanced biomedical, microbiological and biochemical examinations;
- conduct analytical, consultative and research activities;
- interpret complex examination results in the context of patient history and epidemiology of disease or agent;
- utilize computer software;
- Supervisory ability.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS - GENERAL EXPERIENCE
Eight (8) years of experience in a public health or medical laboratory involving scientific work in the field of microbiology, biochemistry or molecular biology.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS - SPECIAL EXPERIENCE
Two (2) years of the General Experience must have been at the full working level in the field of microbiology.
NOTE: For state employees this experience is interpreted at the level of Microbiologist 2.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS - SUBSTITUTIONS ALLOWED
- College training in the natural sciences may be substituted for the General Experience on the basis of fifteen (15) semester hours equalling one-half (1/2) year of experience to a maximum of four (4) years for a Bachelor's degree.
- A Master's degree in the natural sciences may be substituted for one (1) additional year of the General Experience.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience with conventional and molecular identification procedures for all potential bioterrorism agents in clinical and environmental samples
- Experience with conventional and molecular methods for the identification of all enteric pathogens and emerging infection disease agents and antimicrobial resistance testing
- Experience with laboratory accreditation/certification regulations such as the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act and Laboratory Response Network (LRN)
- Experience with clinical assay, validation, and implementation of new protocols and writing standard operating in accordance with CLIA requirements
- Experience coordinating with others to establish and maintain daily workflow priorities in the unit to ensure the efficient, prompt, safe, and accurate performance of test procedures that includes maintaining an adequate inventory of in-dated reagents and supplies necessary for the unit's operation and the review and verification of results obtained
- Experience with Quality Assurance, Quality Control and Safety policies and procedures, including a comprehensive understanding of Biosafety Level 2 and Biosafety Level 3 laboratory practices
SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
- Incumbents in this class must be willing to periodically undergo tests or immunizations for communicable diseases.
- Incumbents in this class may be required to have specific education and/or experience to meet the various certification and/or licensing requirements.
- Incumbents may be required to undergo and successfully complete security background checks.
WORKING CONDITIONS
Incumbents in this class may be exposed to communicable diseases and hazardous substances.
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