Summary

VA San Diego is recruiting for a Nuclear Medicine Technologist to work in Medical Imaging Service where small amounts of radioactive materials are used to diagnose or treat a variety of diseases including many types of cancers - heart disease - brain disease and bone disease.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• Certification: Certification in nuclear medicine technology by the Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification Board (NMTCB) or the American Registry of Radiologic Technology (ARRT) (N)
• NMTCB or ARRT (N) certification eligibility requirements are normally satisfied by one of the following: Completion of a NMTCB-recognized nuclear medicine technology program - OR Completion of a nuclear medicine technology program accredited by the Joint Review Committee on Educational Programs in Nuclear Medicine Technology (JRCNMT) - or other accrediting agencies as recognized by the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) - culminating in a certificate - associate - baccalaureate - or master's degree
• Educational programs must have structured clinical training sufficient to provide clinical competency in radiation safety - instrumentation - clinical procedures - and radio-pharmacy - as deemed acceptable by the NMTCB
• Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements above - the following criteria must also be met: Experience: One (1) year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level directly related to the position being filled - AND Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• The candidate must demonstrate all of the following technical KSAs: Ability to produce and assess high quality scans and quality control images using independent judgement to recognize abnormal or unacceptable results
• Knowledge and skill in use of ancillary equipment with an understanding of how the results will affect the study outcome
• Knowledge of physiologic processes as they relate to altered radiopharmaceutical uptake and/or artefactual findings
• Ability to obtain - assess - and document pre-therapy patient preparation information and provide post-therapy patient education following proper administration of advanced therapy dose
• Ability to develop new protocols for imaging procedures
• Ability to analyze instances of increased radiation exposure levels and recommend measures to reduce
• Ability to analyze consequences of improper packaging of radioactive material and take appropriate actions
• NOTE: Experience that meets the KSAs above must be described in your resume in order to receive credit for this position
• Preferred Experience: Certification by the CA Dept of Public Health in Nuclear Medicine in all scopes defined in Section 30533 - Plus Venipuncture Extensive PET/CT experience to include recent cardiac - neurology - and cancer imaging
• Cardiac imaging experience must include experience with rubidium generator - glucose loading protocols - corrective for breathing artifacts - and injecting contrast
• Ability to utilize and understand advanced PET applications to include TOF - misregistration of images - beam hardening - metal artifact - etc
• Experience adjusting/rewriting prewritten protocols on Siemens computers
• Theranostics experience with I-131 thyroid therapy - Ra-223 Xofigo - YT-90 - Ga68 PSMA to Lu-177 PSMA - GA68/Cu60-Dotatate to Lu177-Dotatate Extensive experience in USP>825>radiopharmacy
• Understanding and ability to perform USP <825> compliant testing for self and lab
• Experience preparing radiopharmaceuticals from bulk 99mTc
• Ability to perform all QC to assure radiopharmaceuticals purity
• Experience with 99Mo generators
• PACS experience
• References: VA Handbook 5005 - Part II - Appendix G19 - "Nuclear Medicine Technologist Qualification Standard" Physical Requirements: Able to lift and carry moderately heavy objects 15-44 pounds - able to use both hands - all fingers - able to walk and stand a minimum of 4 hours
• Able to use both legs and engage in repeated bending for 4 hours
• Vision in both eyes - able to distinguish basic colors - able to distinguish shades of colors - hearing with or without aids - able to rotate trunk side to side and able to sit 50 plus minutes.

Duties

• As a Nuclear Medicine Technologist (NMT) you will be responsible for administering - under the direction of a physician - both diagnostic and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals and adjunct medications
• You will be responsible for the safe use of ionizing and nonionizing radiation for diagnostic - therapeutic - and research purposes
• You will also review patients' medical history to understand the patients' illness and pending diagnostic or treatment procedure
• instruct the patient before - during - and following the procedure
• evaluate the satisfactory preparation of the patient before beginning a procedure
• and recognize emergency patient conditions and initiate lifesaving first aid when appropriate
• You will acquire - process and transfer the imaging study for review by the Nuclear Medicine physician
• Duties include - but are not limited to: Receiving/interpreting requests Securing patient confidence/cooperation Preparing radiopharmaceuticals for patient administration Performing and monitoring specialized tests and/or studies Managing protocols for new tests Assisting in - or performing - exposure pattern studies Assisting in - or establishing - radiation safety policies Utilizing computerized systems in networking and processing Work Schedule: Monday - Friday - 7:30am-4:00pm Functional Statement #:000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required