Biological Safety Specialist

UT Southwestern Medical Center • Dallas, TX

13d • Hybrid

About The Position

UT Southwestern is seeking a Biological Safety Specialist to support and strengthen our biological safety program across research and healthcare environments. We are looking for someone with a bachelor's degree in a safety-related field, microbiology, biology, biomedical science, or a related environmental health science field, strong communication and presentation skills, the ability to train large diverse audiences, excellent documentation, time management, and attention to detail, and the confidence to work safely in laboratory, healthcare, and other environments involving biological and hazardous materials. The ideal candidate is comfortable traveling between UT Southwestern locations, operating safety vehicles/large trucks as needed, and responding professionally in environments where exposure to biological hazards and human specimens occur; works with bio/hazardous/morgue/anatomy lab and responds to urine/feces/all bodily fluids hazards. As a Biological Safety Specialist, you will be responsible for ensuring regulatory compliance, conducting laboratory inspections, delivering safety training, supporting Institutional Biosafety Committee activities, and providing expert guidance on biological safety practices; works under minimal supervision to provide knowledge and expertise in operation and support of biological safety programs and compliance with regulatory agencies and national guidelines. Work Location: Dallas Campus; travel to and from other UTSW locations as needed. Shift Requirement: 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday; requires availability for on-call coverage and/or emergency response situations.

Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree in safety related field
• strong communication and presentation skills
• the ability to train large diverse audiences
• excellent documentation, time management, and attention to detail
• the confidence to work safely in laboratory, healthcare, and other environments involving biological and hazardous materials
• comfortable traveling between UT Southwestern locations
• operating safety vehicles/large trucks as needed
• responding professionally in environments where exposure to biological hazards and human specimens occur
• works with bio/hazardous/morgue/anatomy lab and responds to urine/feces/all bodily fluids hazards

Responsibilities

• Reviews research projects submitted to the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC); denotes safety deficiencies and assists with monthly IBC meeting planning.
• Performs surveys of laboratories and facilities to ensure adherence to safety regulations and procedures; responsible for monthly laboratory and follow-up surveys; responsible for annual validation of safety related equipment.
• Identifies potential biological safety hazards, prepares reports on conditions, and takes actions to mitigate identified deficiencies: this may be in response to pointed requests from academic/research or healthcare personnel, as well as when issues are identified during other courses of business.
• Delivers safety training with a focus on biological and lab safety content to all departments on campus.
• Aids in creating safety training and updates safety training content.
• Ensures employee health and safety standards related to biological safety are met in all areas of the organization.
• Develops safety guidance, assists with SOPs, and other educational documents in response to identifications of deficiency areas with departments.
• This position is designated as essential. Individual may be on call or emergency situation may require individual to report to work outside of set work schedule in order to sustain institutional services or protect assets.
• Ensures proper hazardous materials management for both the research enterprise and health system to include inventory management, use, security, and disposal.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• PPO medical plan, available day one at no cost for full-time employee-only coverage
• 100% coverage for preventive healthcare-no copay
• Paid Time Off, available day one
• Retirement Programs through the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS)
• Paid Parental Leave Benefit
• Wellness programs
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Qualified Employer

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level