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Job Title: Pathologist Assistant
Job Location: Boston, MA
Job Type: Full-Time

Job Description:

• Assists in the preparation and performance of human surgical specimen dissection, including accessioning, gross description, fixation and processing.
• Performs gross description for large resection specimens such as colon and mastectomy specimens
• Ability to gross small neuro specimens and melanoma specimens
• Teach and mentor pathologist assistant students and grossing techs how to gross moderately complex and large resection cases
• Performs some duties of a Histotechnologist to include, organizing, processing, cutting frozen sections, staining, and otherwise preparing tissue for microscopic evaluation by the Pathologist.
• Obtains patient’s clinical history and tissue type for specimens missing this information.
• Maintains and updates autopsy and mortuary policy and procedures manuals to ensure compliance with CAP and Joint Commission accreditation standards, under direction of department manager.
• Administers the daily operation of the surgical pathology dissection suite. Cleans and disinfects work area, inventories and stocks supplies.  Monitors and cleans instruments and equipment (fume hoods, cryostats etc).
• Assists with materials management within the department.  Collects and co-ordinates delivery of consumable supplies and equipment to laboratories and satellite offices.  Monitors inventory of store room under the direction of the laboratory supervisor and/or department manager.
• Participates in removal of hazardous waste from laboratories to storage facility within the department.  Communicates with safety department as necessary.
• Exhibits an understanding and knowledge of: histologic tissue preparation, opening and embedding cassettes, slide labeling and coverslipping.
• Prepares chemicals and dyes for use in routine and special staining techniques of diagnostic specimens.
• Exhibits an understanding and knowledge of: routine histologic staining and set-up of frozen-section staining area; use of automated tissue staining equipment and operation and maintenance of automated coverslipper.
• Performs accurate labeling and filing of slides and blocks. Records statistical data (e.g., number of cases, blocks, slides, stains) and tests results on a daily basis.
• Cleans and maintains tissue processors
• Calibrates and maintains laboratory equipment.  Reports malfunctioning equipment to supervisor and maintains daily log of equipment performance.  Assists with equipment delivery.  Performs preventative maintenance and QC documentation of laboratory equipment.
• Implements and understands the concepts of Universal Precautions, chemical hygiene, infection control and laboratory safety.
• Quality Control checks and temperature monitoring and documentation for laboratory equipment.
• Participates as a team member of the Decedent Affairs Office
• Receives deceased patients from hospital transport.
• Escorts deceased patients to hospital morgue for storage and places deceased patients into mortuary refrigerators.
• Accessions deceased patients.  Summarizes statistics of deceased patients on a monthly basis for department manager.
• Communicates on behalf of the Decedent Affairs Office with regard to death certificates and body release authorization forms.
• Communicates with funeral directors, hospital house staff, pathology staff, Medical Examiners office with regard to autopsies or body release.
• Ensures that documents regarding release of deceased patients (death certificates, release authorization forms) are accurate and complete.
• Ensures that the identity of the deceased patient has been confirmed, prior to release, by correlating the death certificate with patient name tag, wrist band, toe tag etc.
• Communicates with families of deceased patients.  Assists and guides with issues pertaining to the mortuary service.
• Organizes and assists with deceased patient viewing.  Prepares deceased for viewing by family.  Operates video monitoring equipment.  Confers with psychiatric nurses, social workers and administrators as necessary.
• Schedules and performs release of bodies to funeral directors. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and/or livery services.  Keeps appropriate records of these transactions.
• Cares for and distributes personal effects of deceased patients to appropriate departments  (valuables, clothes etc.)
• Cleans and disinfects morgue, morgue refrigerators, receiving areas and equipment.
• Discards all biohazard and chemical waste in accordance with hospital policies and procedures.
• Ascertains correct legal authorization for autopsy.  Checks autopsy permission form to confirm accuracy and completeness.
• Retrieves patient chart and medical record and any other pertinent data.
• Confers with pathologist to determine necessity for special specimen collection techniques and notifies all personnel involved.
• Contacts pathology resident and pathologist on call, attending clinical physician listed on death certificate and all other authorities prior to beginning dissection.  Coordinates special requests for organ sampling.
• Performs postmortem examination including; external examination, in situ organ inspection, evisceration, dissection and dictation or recording of data, i.e. organ weights, presence of body fluids and gross anatomic findings.
• Collaborates with pathologist to select and prepare gross tissue samples for frozen and permanent sections.
• Photographs and archives body, organs, microscope slides and other relevant material.
• Collates data for quality improvement indicators as directed.
• Groups data for quality improvement indicators as directed.
• Utilizes hospital’s cultural beliefs as the basis for decision making and to support the hospital’s mission and goals.
• Follows established hospital infection control and safety procedures.
• Performs other duties as needed.