Chief Radiation Therapist

Creating Life Better Here starts with you. At San Juan Regional Medical Center, we're more than a healthcare provider—we're a values-driven organization dedicated to delivering exceptional care. As a team member, you help fulfill our mission to make life better here for our community.

Required Behaviors:

• As you go about fulfilling this mission, your work habits and work relationships should embody SJRMC's values. These values are our culture, our identity as an organization: Sacred Trust, Personal Reverence, Thoughtful Anticipation, Team Accountability and Creative Vitality ask more of us than merely completing some list of tasks. Our values ask for a deeper level of commitment, and what is asked of us we freely give because we believe in our mission.

Required Qualifications:

• Registered through the American Registry of Radiologic Technologist (ARRT) as a Certified Radiation Therapist
• Current New Mexico State license in Radiation Therapy
• Fluent in English

Preferred Qualifications:

• Minimum five (5) years experience as a Radiation Therapist in a lead role
• Current CPR certification

Duties and Responsibilities:

Treatment:

• Manage treatment machine schedule to assure it is adequately staffed
• Operates linear accelerator and or Superficial X-ray machine for the treatment of cancer patients
• Sets up and positions patients for their daily treatments as outlined in the patient care plan
• Schedules patients for their daily treatments
• Performs daily machine warm up and QA data checks
• Will be on call for any after hours (emergency)

Maintenance:

• In the event of a machine failure or change in the accelerator and CT/Sims performance, the Chief Therapist will contact the Physicist and the service engineer to coordinate repairs
• Will coordinate preventative maintenance inspections (PMI) with the vendor for the Varian accelerator and CT/Sim and inform the physicist and department manager as to when the PMI’s are scheduled
• Will keep the physicist and the department manager informed as to the working status of the accelerator and the CT/Sim at all times

Simulation:

• Schedules and maintains therapist staff rotation through CT/Sim
• Operates CT/Simulators
• Sets up and positions patients according to physician and or dosimetrist instructions
• Constructs special treatment aids and devices

Communication:

• Will inform the physicist, physician, and manager of any treatment machine issues and any interruption in patient care due to a machine failure
• Will facilitate weekly patient chart rounds
• Effectively communicates with staff and patients
• Informs the physician and/or nurse of any changes in the patient’s status during treatments
• Explain to the patient and/or family as to what will occur during the treatment process and answer any questions that may arise

Administration:

• Maintain daily documentation in the patient treatment record
• Maintain daily QA documentation
• Generate after hours call schedule
• Monitors and documents clinical training for therapy students
• Review technical charges and work with billing department to edit or make corrections
• Assure that all pertinent treatment information (signed consent, pathology, physician intent, physician and physicist signed treatment plan etc.) is in the patient’s record by performing a weekly chart check
• Will assume administrative responsibilities such as (supervision of clinical staff, Kronos, signing/approval and ordering of minor supplies) in the absence of the manager

Education:

• Maintains CEU’s as required by the ARRT and the State of New Mexico
• Attend patient care, quality assurance and departmental staff meetings

General:

• Each employee is responsible for implementing SJRMC’s Service Standards into their daily work:

                                                     Safety, Courtesy, Effectiveness, and Stewardship

• Other duties as assigned

Physical Demands and Environmental Work Conditions:

Physical Activities:

• All Cancer Center jobs may require lifting/pushing/pulling varying weights may exceed two hundred (200) pounds
• Activities may include intermittent or prolonged: standing, walking, sitting, talking, hearing, pushing, pulling, stooping, kneeling, crouching, reaching with arms and using the hands to handle or feel
• Repetitive motions may also be required, such as: wrist / hand movements, grasping, and finger dexterity (as in typing, writing, etc.)

Work Environment:

• The job requires exposure to the following conditions: risk of radiation, working near moving or mechanical parts, fumes or airborne particles, risk of electrical shock
• The noise level may vary from very quiet to very loud

Sensory Requirements:

Hearing:

• Must be able to hear, alarms on equipment, fire alarms, overhead announcements.
• Patients/families verbal discussions.
• Instructions/feedback from other healthcare providers​

​Vision:

• Must be able to see: focus on close-up and distant objects
• Distinguish colors
• Have intact peripheral vision
• Depth perception (judge distance and spatial relationships)