Research Assistant 3 - Hematology/Oncology (Haake Lab)

Discover Vanderbilt University Medical Center:  Located in Nashville, Tennessee, and operating at a global crossroads of teaching, discovery, and patient care, VUMC is a community of diverse individuals who come to work each day with the simple aim of changing the world. It is a place where your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged. Vanderbilt Health recognizes that diversity is essential for excellence and innovation. We are committed to an inclusive environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and where your diversity of culture, thinking, learning, and leading is sought and celebrated. It is a place where employees know they are part of something that is bigger than themselves, take exceptional pride in their work and never settle for what was good enough yesterday. Vanderbilt’s mission is to advance health and wellness through preeminent programs in patient care, education, and research.

Organization:

Hematology/Oncology Research

Job Summary:

Perform under minimal supervision a wide variety of complex tasks requiring practical understanding of scientific techniques and advanced knowledge of scientific theory.

Department Summary:

The Division of Hematology and Oncology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center conducts research and treats all types of adult cancers including solid tumor cancers and hematological (blood) disorders, as benign hematologic disorders such as coagulation disorders and non-cancerous blood diseases.
With over 80 faculty members representing a broad range of professional expertise, our dedicated team of professionals is committed to hematologic and oncologic care through:

• Research to better understand and treat cancers and benign hematologic
diseases
• Translating VICC laboratory research into therapies to help people with
cancer
• State-of-the-art patient care and personalized cancer therapy
• Clinical trials, including Phase I drug development with subsequent Phase II
and Phase III testing
• Training future hematology and oncology doctors and researchers
• Cancer chemotherapy, pharmacology, and biological therapy with an
emphasis on solid tumors
• Treating bleeding and coagulation disorders, anemia and other disorders of
blood

.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
• Under minimal supervision, plan, conduct and evaluate experiments and assays of varying complexity.
• Plan and coordinate experiments in conjunction with Principal Investigator (PI).
• Understand and follow experimental protocols (may include animal handling, tissue culture, etc.)
• Record, compile, interpret, and communicate data/results.
• Follow University safety protocols (may include use of combustibles, radioactivity, toxic material, and/or carcinogens)
• Perform calculations involving molarity, % solutions, and serial dilutions.
• Prepare, operate and troubleshoot equipment in experimental procedures.
• Recommend equipment and supplies needed for research projects.
• Read and follow all equipment manuals.
• Maintain and repair equipment according to manufacturer and university guidelines.
• Ensure laboratory is prepared for experiments.
• Maintain inventories.
• Maintain sterile conditions as required.
• Prepare reagents.
• Assist PI in modifying procedures and techniques.
• Recognize problems and suggest solutions, assist in modifications.
• Recommend improvements to established techniques and/or protocols.
• Maintain personal knowledge of scientific trends through literature reviews, attendance at meetings, conferences and seminars.
• Provide appropriate written/oral documentation of experiments
• Prepare research progress reports.
• Analyze and summarize test results.
• Preparation and oral presentation of data as required
• Assist in the effective operation of the laboratory.
• Train other employees.
• Supervise projects and/or personnel.

TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES

Our Academic Enterprise is one of the nation’s longest serving and most prestigious academic medical centers. Through its historic bond with Vanderbilt University and integral role in the School of Medicine, Vanderbilt Health cultivates distinguished research and educational programs to advance a clinical enterprise that provides compassionate and personalized care and support for millions of patients and family members each year.

World-leading academic departments and comprehensive centers of excellence pursue scientific discoveries and transformational educational and clinical advances across the entire spectrum of health and disease.