Laboratory Director Job Description

The laboratory director is responsible for hiring the right people, conducting regular performance reviews, scheduling lab staffers, and making sure staff members are competent. The lab director may need to run background checks on staff members to conform with government standards which are designed to keep labs safe and secure. The lab directors are responsible for budgeting and research initiatives.

They must balance the needs of the lab with the need to schedule equipment and personnel in a way that is convenient for them. Laboratory directors make sure that policies are followed, that staff members are informed of them, and that policies are set. The director of the clinical laboratory deals with ethics in clinical trials, confidentiality, and meeting the needs of people who need the lab services.

The Laboratory Director's Responsibility and Overhead

The laboratory director's involvement must be considered adequate by the laboratory administration, medical staff, and inspection team, and must follow written policy or agreement, according to the checklist's section laboratory director responsibility and oversight. If the director fails to perform the duties in the job description, or if the hospital administrator, chief of staff, laboratory supervisor, or technical staff identify situations in which greater personal involvement on the part of the director is needed, there are examples listed. If the lab director frequently conducts duties remotely, his or her on-site visits must be defined in writing and established at a certain regularity.

The laboratory general checklist has changed, it now requires that all personnel trained outside the United States must be evaluated by a nationally recognized organization to determine their equivalency to an education obtained within the United States. The requirement for individuals responsible for competency assessments has the education and experience to evaluate the complexity of the testing being assessed, as well as a separate requirement. The note says the evaluators' required qualificationsvary according to how complex the testing is.

Laboratory Supervisors

Laboratory professionals are trained and educated to perform the functions they do, and in most cases have certification for their position, because they produce the results that impact the health care you receive. Those in supervisor roles have years of experience and extensive training and are in charge of the testing. They make sure that quality control and management systems are followed.

Many are physicians who specialize in the science of identifying the nature and cause of disease and who are trained to interpret Pap tests and other samples. A consulting pathologist may be retained if the laboratory director is not a pathologist. The director is responsible for managing the lab's operations, including maintaining the standards of agencies that inspect and accredit the lab, and ensuring that all technical, clinical, and administrative functions are performed, regardless of qualifications.

Medical doctors diagnose and assess disease by examining a patient's tissues, blood, and other body fluids. They are trained to interpret biological samples. Pathologists work with doctors and other healthcare professionals to identify and rule out diseases and conditions.

A laboratory may use more than one Pathologist. A general supervisor, sometimes referred to as the laboratory manager, may have the same qualifications as the technical supervisor, but an individual with a bachelor's or associate's degree in the sciences and appropriate experience may qualify as well. A general supervisor is in charge of the day-to-day laboratory operations and the personnel who conduct the tests.

Phlebotomists draw blood for laboratory tests using venipuncture or skin punctures, and they work directly with the patient. PBTs who have completed high school and received phlebotomy training can do a job. Some may be certified.