Location: Raleigh,NC, USA
This is a Medical Laboratory Supervisor I position that will provide on-site laboratory supervision, planning and coordination, for all activities of the Microbiology Unit's Core Microbiology Program including Enteric Bacteriology and select antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST). This position will manage daily activities of four direct reports, manage the section's Quality Assurance Program, and oversee patient specimen testing and resulting. The position will routinely coordinate with CDC's Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory Network (ARLN) and the North Carolina Communicable Disease Branch Healthcare-associated infections (NC CDB HAI) group for the identification of emerging pathogens and antimicrobial threats (e.g. carbapenamase-producing organisms (CPOs)), and the NC CDB Foodborne Outbreak group for the identification of foodborne pathogens and related outbreak response. This position will participate in new method development and implementation of AST and emerging identification methods and techniques (e.g., MALDI-TOF, whole-genome sequencing (WGS)). This position will perform area-specific inventory and ordering tracking, and management of staff time, bench assignments, leave approvals, and performance evaluations. Duties at this position also include providing testing consultation and AST alert values to physicians, epidemiologists, nurses, and laboratorians, and routine use of a laboratory information management system (LIMS). Candidates must be able to adapt to changing requirements that can arise in a dynamic work environment and work well within multidisciplinary teams. Work is performed at Biosafety Levels 2 & 2+ using proper containment techniques and personal protective equipment (PPE) as required. Surge capacity response during viral, bacterial, and/or fungal public health disease clusters, outbreaks, and/or pandemics is required. Work may require extended work hours to include weekends and/or holidays to meet routine and/or emergency specimen processing, testing, and reporting.
Areas of responsibility and duties include but are not limited to:
* Provide direct laboratory supervision of the NCSLPH Microbiology Unit's Core Microbiology Program including Enteric Bacteriology and select antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST)
* Provide daily supervision of testing personnel, conduct staff training, manage SOPs, and perform competency assessments per regulatory guidelines (e.g., CLIA)
* Maintain responsibility for patient reports and AST results
* Provide regulatory oversight of Quality Management Systems (QMS)
* Assist in new method development and implementation of AST and emerging identification methods and techniques (e.g., MALDI-TOF, whole-genome sequencing (WGS))
* Routinely coordinate with CDC's Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory Network (ARLN) and the North Carolina Communicable Disease Branch Healthcare-associated infections (NC CDB HAI) group for the identification of emerging pathogens and antimicrobial threats (e.g. carbapenamase-producing organisms (CPOs)), and the NC CDB Foodborne Outbreak group for the identification of foodborne pathogens and related outbreak response
* Provide laboratory testing consultation and AST alert values to NC CDB, CDC, physicians, epidemiologists, and nurses
* Utilize STARLIMS and Qualtrax compliance software for patient information, Quality Control, results entry, and document management
* Manage and procure section reagents and consumables, manage sections budgets, and contribute to grant writing
About the NC Division of Public Health (DPH):
The NC Division of Public Health works to promote and contribute to the highest possible level of health for the people of North Carolina. Our entire statewide system of public health has dedicated professionals who carry out our mission every day through a wide range of essential and activities touching the lives of everyone in our state.
About the State Laboratory of Public Health:
The North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health (NCSLPH) provides an array of services including Laboratory Testing, Training/Consultation and Certification. The NCSLPH provides more than 125 clinical laboratory tests and more than 65 environmental laboratory tests to the public and private medical health care system in North Carolina and performs over 6 million tests annually on human, animal, food, water, and agricultural samples. Additionally, NCSLPH provides training and consultation for local health departments, hospitals, commercial laboratories, private health care professionals, community based organizations and state and regional staff from the NC Division of Public Health (DPH) and other state and regional
agencies.
A staff of over 200 employees make up the organization units which include Administration, Bioterrorism and Emerging Pathogens (BTEP), Chemical Terrorism and Threat, Environmental Sciences, Laboratory Improvement, Molecular Diagnostics & Epidemiology, Sequencing and Bioinformatics Response (SABR), Newborn Screening, Microbiology, and Virology/Serology and is co-located with the Office of Chief Medical in a 220,000-sq. ft. state of the art facility. The NCSLPH has several doctoral level managers and research scientists as well as medical laboratory specialists, medical technologists, chemists, laboratory technicians, and support staff.
The Infectious Diseases Unit (IDU) at the North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health (NCSLPH) is comprised of three primary units containing various laboratories which provide testing services to local and state partners as well as to clinical labs for the diagnosis, treatment, surveillance, and control of communicable diseases. Collectively, the unit conducts highly
complex testing procedures for the detection, identification, and characterization of a wide range of infectious agents from a variety of clinical, reference, and environmental specimens.
The Microbiology Unit provides clinical and reference microbiological testing for public and private laboratories as well as associated partners. This diverse unit performs testing including organism identification and detection that aids in the diagnosis of foodborne, vaccine-preventable, parasitic, and fungal diseases. Microbiological culture and workups to identify
Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and a variety of other pathogens such as Legionella and Neisseria are also performed by this unit. Microbial resistance testing and surveillance methods are also performed within the unit. Results generated from this unit are utilized by a variety of partners for diagnosis, patient management, surveillance, and outbreak investigations.
The Microbiology Unit's Core Microbiology Programs section includes Enteric Bacteriology and select Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (AST). This section provides reference and specialized testing services for isolation, identification, characterization, and select AST for a variety of bacterial pathogens (e.g. carbapenamase producing organisms (CPOs). The section routinely coordinates with the Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory Network (ARLN) for the identification of emerging pathogens and antimicrobial threats and the North Carolina Communicable Disease Branch Foodborne Outbreak group for the identification of foodborne pathogens and outbreak response. This work is performed by a team consisting of 5 staff including the supervisor. Specimens are accepted from public and private health care providers across the state
Campus Amenities and Benefits at the State Laboratory of Public Health
We are in Raleigh, NC. According to Forbes, we are ranked as one of the top 20 best places to retire and the 2nd most educated city in the country. US News & World ranks Raleigh among the top 15 places to live in the U.S.
* 220,000 square feet state-of-the-art facility
* Plentiful Free Parking
* Easy access to highways (70, 40 and 440), NC Museum of Art, Umstead State Park, healthcare providers, and shopping centers
* Proximity to globally and nationally ranked universities (NC State, UNC-Chapel Hill, Duke)
* Fitness area with exercise equipment, classes, and wellness activities
* Weekly Food Trucks, including Double Food Truck Fridays
* Car Cleaning and Detailing Services On-site bimonthly
* Annual Flu Shot Clinic for Employees and Families
* Monthly and quarterly career development classes, including opportunities for traveling
* Library of academic journals and materials on-site
* Employee Engagement and Staff Development Activities
* NCSLPH Employee Recognition Programs
* State Health Plan and State of NC Employee Benefits
Compensation and Benefits:The State of North Carolina offers excellent comprehensive benefits. Employees can participate in health insurance options, standard and supplemental retirement plans, and the NCFlex program (numerous high-quality, low-cost benefits on a pre-tax basis). Employees also receive paid vacation, sick, and community service leave. In addition, paid parental leave is available to eligible employees. Visit website for benefits.
For more information about DHHS: below are the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) associated with the position. These KSAs, along with the minimum education and experience listed, are required in order to be deemed eligible for the position therefore you must provide supporting information, within the body of your application, to demonstrate your possession of each KSA listed. Any information listed under the text resume section or on an attachment will not be considered for qualifying credit.
Qualified applicants must document on the application that they possess all of the following:
* Must meet Federal CLIA '88 personnel requirements for Technical Supervisor in a high complexity laboratory. Candidates must attach a copy of their transcript(s) and/or certification(s) to qualify for consideration.
* Experience with clinical microbiology procedures using classical microbiological and molecular techniques for the identification and characterization of bacterial pathogens
* Knowledge of antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST)
* Knowledge and experience troubleshooting test procedures and interpreting laboratory results
* Experience performing or supervising staff performing new method verifications and validations
* Knowledge of CLIA and/or CAP regulations and QA document management
Management Preferences:
* American Society of Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Certification
* Experience performing and interpreting antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST)
Physical Requirements:
* An occupational medical assessment may be required to determine your ability to safely work with biological, chemical, or radiological hazards. This position may also require periodic medical screenings to confirm safety practices are effectively preventing occupational injury or illness.
* All costs associated with obtaining occupational health services are covered by NCSLPH.
* This position:
* Works frequently with infectious disease agents that require the use of personal protective equipment.
* Work requires ability to distinguish colors and close visual acuity to perform data analysis and visual inspection of specimens using standard laboratory equipment.
* Use of laboratory equipment requires ability to manipulate items with fingers, ability to grasp, and ability to feel/perceive the attributes of objects, such as size, shape, temperature, or texture.
Some state job postings say you can qualify by an equivalent combination of education and experience. If that language appears below, then you may qualify through EITHER years of education OR years of directly related experience, OR a combination of both. See for details.
Qualified applicants must possess, and application must clearly reflect work experience that demonstrates the following:
Bachelors degree in medical technology, chemistry, or a biological science from an appropriately accredited institution and two years of experience in a laboratory in the assigned area, one of which is in a supervisory or other leadership capacity;
OR
An equivalent combination of education and experience. Necessary Special Qualifications Must be capable of meeting the Federal CLIA 88 personnel requirements for a general supervisor in a laboratory performing high complexity testing.
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is an Equal Opportunity Employer who embraces an Employment First philosophy which consists of complying with all federal laws, state laws and Executive Orders. We are committed to reviewing requests for reasonable accommodation at any time during the hiring process or while on the job. For more information about DHHS:
DHHS uses the Merit-Based Recruitment and Selection Plan to fill positions subject to the State Human Resources Act with the most qualified individuals. Hiring salary will be based on relevant qualifications, internal equity, and budgetary considerations pertinent to the advertised position.
It is critical to our screening and salary determination process that applications contain comprehensive information. Information should be provided in the appropriate areas to include the beginning and ending dates of jobs worked, education with the date graduated, all work experience, and certificates / licenses. Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of completing this application. Answers to Supplemental Questions must refer to education or work experience listed on this application to receive credit. Degrees must be received from appropriately accredited institutions.
* Applicants seeking Veteran's Preference must attach a DD-214 Member-4 Form (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) to their applications.
* Applicants seeking National Guard Preference must attach a NGB 23A (RPAS) if they are a current member of the NC National Guard in good standing. If a former member of the NC National Guard, who served for at least 6 years and was discharged under honorable conditions, they must attach either a DD256 or NGB 22.
* If applicants earned college credit hours but did not complete a degree program, they must attach an unofficial transcript to each application to receive credit for this education.
* Applicants may be subject to a criminal background check. All candidates selected for positions considered Positions of Trust will be subject to a criminal background check.
Applications for positions requiring specific coursework must be accompanied by a copy of the applicant's transcript. Applicants with degrees not conferred at a United States college or university must attach verification that their degree is equivalent to a similar degree from a U.S. institution. The Office of State Human Resources uses the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) as a referral resource for applicants who need to have their credentials certified as equivalent. For a list of organizations that perform this specialized service, please visit the NACES membership website at Transcripts, degree evaluations and cover letters may be uploaded with your application.
NOTE: Applicants will receive communication via email only for updates on the status of their application or any questions on their application. If there are any questions about this posting other than your application status, please contact HR at 919-###-####.
To check the status of an application, please log in to your NC Government Job Opportunities account and click Application Status .
For technical issues with your application, please call the NeoGov Help Line at 877-###-####. If you have a technical issue with your Government Jobs account, please call their Help Line at 1-855-###-####.