Assistant Director of Laboratory

Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation•Coppermine, Arizona

14h•Onsite

About The Position

The Assistant Director of Laboratory Services is a member of the TCRHCC Laboratory Leadership Team and provides on-site leadership, supervision, regulatory compliance, quality management, personnel oversight, and daily operational management for the Echo Cliffs Health Center Laboratory. Reporting directly to the Director of Laboratory Services, this role is the designated general supervisor and primary laboratory leader at the facility. The laboratory performs waived, moderate-complexity, and/or high-complexity testing as authorized under its CLIA certificate. Working with the Echo Cliffs Health Center Program Director, Director of Laboratory Services, Laboratory Leadership Team, Medical Director, section leaders, and organizational leadership, the Assistant Director ensures high-quality laboratory services that support safe and effective patient care. The position maintains compliance with applicable CLIA, CMS, Joint Commission, OSHA, HIPAA, CDC, manufacturer, and TCRHCC requirements. It leads day-to-day operations, staffing, quality systems, regulatory readiness, and survey preparation, while maintaining close communication with laboratory leadership and supporting operational continuity and alignment with TCRHCC’s mission and goals.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in medical laboratory science, clinical laboratory science, chemical science, biological science, or a related health science field.
Active, unexpired Medical Laboratory Scientist (MLS/MT) certification from a nationally recognized certification agency, maintained in good standing throughout employment.
Three years of progressive leadership experience in a moderate- or high-complexity clinical laboratory, including quality assurance, personnel oversight, regulatory compliance, laboratory information systems, and operational decision-making; or one year of experience as a Laboratory Supervisor or Laboratory Manager.
Demonstrated knowledge of CLIA regulations, personnel requirements, quality systems, proficiency testing requirements, and laboratory accreditation standards.
Knowledge of applicable CMS laboratory requirements, Joint Commission standards, OSHA regulations, HIPAA requirements, and CDC laboratory safety guidelines.
Ability to serve as the primary laboratory leader at a remote healthcare facility while collaborating effectively with centralized laboratory leadership.
Positive working relationships, high ethical standards, and no history of significant professional complaints.
Reliable and dependable attendance.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Strong computer skills, including laboratory information systems, reporting applications, Microsoft Office products, and statistical analysis tools.
Ability to respond appropriately and professionally in stressful situations.
Advanced technical laboratory knowledge and ability to operate, troubleshoot, maintain, and evaluate complex laboratory instrumentation.
Experience with project management, new equipment implementation, testing methodologies, workflow improvements, and process optimization.
Strong emotional intelligence, conflict-resolution, supervisory, coaching, and personnel-development skills.
Ability to independently prioritize operational, staffing, regulatory, financial, and patient-care responsibilities.
Experience preparing for accreditation surveys and regulatory inspections, and managing competency programs and quality-improvement initiatives.
Successful completion of TCRHCC background checks, fingerprint clearance, reference checks, physical examinations, and employment screening requirements.
Satisfactory performance in prior and current employment, supported by positive employment references that address the listed qualifications.
Successful interview demonstrating leadership skills and knowledge of laboratory functions.
Ability to handle needles, laboratory instruments, and equipment with dexterity; perform prolonged grasping, fine manipulation, and computer keyboard use.
Ability to sit for prolonged periods and occasionally stand, walk, drive, bend, climb, kneel, crouch, twist, balance, and reach; may need to lift, push, or pull up to 100 pounds with appropriate assistance when necessary.
Adequate near and distance vision, color discrimination, depth perception, hearing, and communication abilities for safe and effective laboratory duties.
Sound analytical judgment, attention to detail, technical competence, and ability to work under pressure, prioritize multiple responsibilities, adapt to changes, manage interruptions, and communicate effectively in stressful situations.
Ability to maintain concentration, exercise independent judgment, manage conflict, demonstrate patience and flexibility, and work effectively in a fast-paced healthcare environment.

Responsibilities

Serve as a member of the TCRHCC Laboratory Leadership Team and participate in leadership meetings, strategic planning, quality initiatives, operational improvement projects, and regulatory readiness activities.
Serve as the designated site supervisor and primary laboratory leader for Echo Cliffs Health Center.
Exercise delegated authority from the Director of Laboratory Services over daily operations, personnel supervision, quality management, and regulatory compliance.
Supervise, coach, mentor, schedule, evaluate, and oversee laboratory personnel assigned to Echo Cliffs.
Act as the primary laboratory resource for providers, nursing staff, administration, patients, community stakeholders, and regulatory representatives at Echo Cliffs.
Collaborate with TCRHCC laboratory leadership to support operational consistency, standardization, and alignment across laboratory locations.
Coordinate with Echo Cliffs leadership and provide updates on laboratory processes affecting site operations; support oversight of daily operations.
Implement laboratory goals, objectives, policies, procedures, and initiatives established by TCRHCC Laboratory Leadership.
Communicate operational, staffing, quality, safety, compliance, and patient-care concerns to the Director of Laboratory Services and participate in corrective actions.
Maintain compliance with CLIA, applicable CMS requirements, Joint Commission standards, CLSI best practices, OSHA, HIPAA, CDC guidance, manufacturer requirements, and TCRHCC policies.
Lead Echo Cliffs regulatory readiness, inspections, accreditation activities, quality management, competency assessment, proficiency testing, and corrective action implementation.
Coordinate preparations for inspections, surveys, audits, proficiency testing events, and accreditation reviews; participate in surveys and maintain accreditation and certification requirements.
Develop, implement, and monitor corrective action plans arising from inspections, audits, occurrences, complaints, quality events, competency deficiencies, or proficiency testing failures.
Maintain laboratory, personnel, quality, and regulatory records and documentation required by governing and accreditation organizations.
Ensure compliance with procedures for specimen collection, handling, processing, testing, reporting, and patient-record retention.
Perform and document corrective actions when testing systems do not meet established performance criteria.
Review and monitor quality control, calibration, instrument maintenance, and quality assurance activities.
Coordinate and assign proficiency testing and work with the Laboratory Quality Assurance Coordinator on regulated and non-regulated proficiency testing programs.
Ensure critical and significant test results are communicated, documented, and monitored in accordance with policy and regulatory requirements.
Monitor and trend quality indicators, including turnaround times, proficiency testing performance, specimen rejection rates, corrected reports, critical-result reporting, competency completion, and customer-service indicators.
Develop and lead performance-improvement projects and prepare quality and performance reports; participate in accreditation maintenance programs.
Maintain inventory controls to support uninterrupted services and appropriate use of resources.
Coordinate instrument validation and verification, preventive maintenance, troubleshooting, and implementation of new laboratory technologies.
Ensure new instruments, methodologies, reference ranges, and test systems are validated or verified, documented, and approved before implementation.
Collaborate with laboratory leadership to evaluate and implement testing methodologies and operational improvements.
Assess staffing needs and assist with budget development, productivity monitoring, and resource planning.
Maintain effective relationships with medical staff, nursing staff, ancillary departments, and external service providers; coordinate communication and interdisciplinary activities that improve laboratory operations and patient care.
Ensure personnel meet qualifications and maintain certifications, training, competency assessments, and continuing education requirements.
Participate in recruitment, interviewing, hiring, onboarding, retention, employee development, and succession planning.
Review employee attendance, timekeeping, leave requests, and performance expectations.
Coordinate training for laboratory and non-laboratory personnel, students, and affiliated educational programs.
Ensure initial, six-month, annual, and ongoing competency assessments are completed and documented.
Promote employee engagement, professional growth, accountability, and a culture of quality and safety.
Collaborate with Point-of-Care Testing leadership on competency, quality control, proficiency testing, and regulatory compliance for waived and provider-performed testing.
Collaborate with the Reference Laboratory Coordinator on timely receipt and review of referred test results and annual reference-laboratory performance assessments.
Assist with regulatory oversight of ancillary testing sites.
Ensure compliance with laboratory safety programs, exposure-control plans, infection-prevention standards, and hazardous-materials requirements.
Ensure staff use personal protective equipment appropriately and complete required training in biological hazards, chemical safety, infection prevention, and decontamination.
Maintain a safe laboratory environment for patients, visitors, employees, and external customers.
Perform other job-related duties as assigned.