Lab Tech Coordinator

Position Summary:

The Clinical Laboratory Shift Coordinator organizes and monitors the daily workflow and staffing of a dynamic team, and assures compliance with all policies, procedures, regulatory, and accreditation standards.

This key member of the leadership team works in all clinical laboratory sections as needed. They perform highly complex and varied tasks requiring technical knowledge, its application to a variety of situations, and exercise of independent judgment. They embrace the Carle Experience by ensuring that all aspects are consistently practiced among all staff, and promote employee engagement by helping to identify and implement employee engagement initiatives.

Laboratory Professionals as Carle Health practice at a Magnet-designated hospital, ranked as one of America's 50 Best, where we utilize evidence-based practices to maintain the high-quality standards of Carle Health.

Qualifications:
EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Associates Clinical Laboratory Sciences

CERTIFICATION & LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS
Medical Laboratory Technician (ASCP or AMT) or Medical Technologist (ASCP or AMT).

EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS
Three (3) Laboratory

SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE
Operational Knowledge: Significant knowledge of the technical aspects of clinical systems utilized on assigned shift. Leadership: As a departmental leader, consistently demonstrates a positive attitude and willingness to assess and improve the work environment. Consistently serves as a role model for the Carle Experience by utilizing AIDET, rounding and other tools. Independence, Responsibility, and Good Judgment: The ability to think strategically. Strong organizational skills to coordinate and manage multiple activities simultaneously including an ability to plan and facilitate meetings, delegate, hold people accountable for performance and deadlines, and determine priorities. Teamwork: Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work corroboratively and effectively to develop and maintain a positive, team-focused environment throughout the lab. Demonstrates excellent rapport with physicians, patient care leaders and administrators. Communication: Facilitates open communication, diffuses sources of conflict, demonstrates respect for others, and diplomatically negotiates solutions. Excellent written and verbal communication. Accountability: Demonstrates accountability through passion for excellence, setting ambitious goals, holding self and others accountable for defined expectations and timeliness, taking responsibility for outcomes, eliminating barriers, and achieving results. Prioritization and Delegation: Effectively prioritizes and delegates workload by acting on mission critical tasks first, leveraging available resources, reviewing own workload, implementing workable systems, and providing clear directions to others. Problem Solving: Demonstrates constructive thinking by analyzing issues before acting, generating creative ideas, detecting patterns and connections, breaking down complex problems, and developing concrete tasks.

Essential Functions:

• Performs essential job functions of direct reports, in all clinical lab sections, in order to meet testing needs of the assigned shift. This may include on call and/or working variable shifts as assigned to meet department needs.
• Coordinates the day to day activities of the designated shift or section, including monitoring staff productivity and workload. Meets productivity levels as established by department benchmarking.
• Responsible for collaborating with other leaders to develop staff scheduling, ensuring appropriate staffing levels are maintained as needed based on workload.
• Provides input to Manager regarding various personnel actions including but not limited to hiring and retaining talent, performance appraisals, disciplinary actions and promotions.
• Monitor the Kronos timecards for shift personnel, entering exceptions and approving timecards as needed.
• Responsible for maintenance of equipment and workplace environment, recognizing malfunctions in equipment and facilities to report service needs in a timely manner.
• Establishes effective working relationships and maintain effective communications with all customers. Evaluates and resolves customer satisfaction issues in a timely manner. Create an environment that promotes customer service excellence.
• Ensures the performance of the staff in assigned area(s) to promote safe and effective operations.
• Conduct shift or section meetings at least monthly to ensure information is communicated.
• Resolve problems independently and facilitate solutions; confer with Manager and other Coordinators to resolve more complex situations.
• Is able to identify appropriate resources during non-business hours and utilize them as required in situations that are outside the routine scope of practice.
• Collaborates with coordinators and Supervisors to enforce standardized departmental policies, procedures, and protocols to ensure quality care, efficiency, and compliance among all staff.
• Provides oversight of technical staff to ensure QA/QC procedures are followed.
• Assists with maintaining departmental and organizational accreditation standards.
• Develops and retains talent by offering stretch assignments, collaborating to create actionable development plans and encouraging learning from setbacks in order to promote competence and engagement.
• Collaborate with laboratory leaders to ensure the testing schedule is optimized for patient care, staffing levels and fiscal responsibility.

• Able to work in a fast-paced, high volume environment.
• Performs testing in some or all of the following sections of the clinical laboratory: Blood Bank, Hematology, Chemistry, and Microbiology, including specimen processing. Manual and automated equipment will be used to perform analytical tests including but not limited to: Manual WBC and body fluid differentials, manual body fluid cell counts, specimen dilutions, gram stains, molecular assays, and antibody identification and titers.
• Notifies appropriate staff members of any calibration or equipment failures which cannot be immediately resolved.
• Maintains laboratory supply inventory, notifying appropriate laboratory staff when supplies are below established par levels.
• Troubleshoots any values outside of acceptable ranges that cannot be resolved by technical staff.
• Recognizes test result or instrument function problems that require additional troubleshooting, performs troubleshooting as appropriate.