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Under the combined supervision of the medical director and supervisor of the cutting room, the Pathologist Assistant assists in the gross description and dissection of all types of tissues sent to the surgical pathology laboratory for analysis, including high- complexity specimens. Pathologist Assistants are an integral part of the resident training by educating pathology residents in proper dissection of surgical pathology specimens and appropriate submission of tissues for microscopic analysis thereby ensuring standardization of specimen processing and patient safety.
Lead Pathologists Assistant Expectations:
1. Performs the full scope of Pathologists’ Assistant duties, including gross examination, dissection, and specimen preparation (see Additional Responsibilities Below)
2. Serves as a resource and point of contact for technical staff, trainees, and physicians within the assigned area.
3. Provides guidance, training, and performance feedback to staff.
4. Supports workflow efficiency, problem resolution, and continuous improvement initiatives.
5. Assists in maintaining regulatory compliance, documentation, and quality assurance standards.
6. Participates in development, revision, and implementation of policies, procedures, and best practices.
Additional lead responsibilities will vary based on the assigned lead role (e.g., Gross Room Lead, Autopsy Lead, and Education Lead). Please refer to the role-specific duty list associated with the respective lead assignment.
Job Description:
Primary Responsibilities – Lead Pathologist Assistant:
Autopsy
The role involves coordinating and supporting autopsy services, including participation in PA hiring, serving as a liaison between staff and residents, and overseeing autopsy suite operations. Responsibilities include training residents and PA students, developing and implementing SOPs, ensuring compliance with regulatory standards, maintaining cleanliness and supplies in the autopsy suite, and ensuring proper documentation and tissue discard.
Autopsy Lead Pathologists’ Assistant plays a key leadership role in the autopsy service, participating in hiring decisions, mentoring pathology residents and PA students, and serving as a liaison between residents, pathologists, and technical staff. This role includes developing and implementing daily instructional plans, orienting new personnel, and overseeing autopsy suite operations. The Senior PA is responsible for drafting and maintaining standard operating procedures (SOPs), reviewing quality control data, and ensuring regulatory compliance. Additional responsibilities include managing autopsy tissue disposition, maintaining cleanliness and supplies, and ensuring accurate documentation through the “Morgue Documentation” system. Performs all other duties as assigned to support excellence in autopsy service delivery.
Education
The Senior Pathologists’ Assistant supports training and educational efforts by developing onboarding schedules and daily instructional plans for pathology residents and PA students. They serve as a key liaison between PA students, staff, and PA schools, providing mentorship, feedback, and coordination. This role also contributes to the hiring process, assists with onboarding, and ensures effective communication and collaboration among all team members. Helps supervisor with onboarding of PA students. Create onboarding training schedule for residents and PA students
Surgical Grossing Room
The Lead Pathologists’ Assistant oversees the surgical grossing room’s operations, ensuring quality, safety, and regulatory compliance. Responsibilities include developing staff schedules, participating in hiring and performance evaluations, and serving as a liaison between PAs, pathologists, and technical staff. The Lead PA develops and implements standard operating procedures, responds to safety concerns, prepares for inspections, and facilitates weekly team meetings to support effective communication and workflow.
Additional Responsibilities – Pathologist Assistant:
The following statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by individuals assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities and skills required of this position.
1. Dictate gross descriptions and dissects all types of surgical specimens (type, size, weight color and anatomic characteristics), including high-complexity specimens. (essential)
2. Selects appropriate tissue sections for microscopic examination Understands the appropriate sections necessary for pathologic diagnosis, staging tumors, margin evaluation, and lymph node evaluation Understands the methodology of submitting tissue to obtain optimum microscopic sections of optimum quality (essential)
3. Assists and educates residents with appropriate orientation and gross descriptions and dissection of all types of surgical pathology specimens. (essential)
4. Operates laboratory information system is order to achieve appropriate specimen handling per standard operating procedures. (essential)
5. May perform autopsies including assurance that proper and legal authorization has been obtained to perform a postmortem examination (essential)
6. May perform intraoperative consultations, including gross description, selection of tissues for sectioning, microtomy and tissue staining. (essential)
7. Assists in collecting and submitting tissue for a variety of needs, which may include procurement of tissues for controls, teaching- research, and tissue banking (essential)
8. Participates in daily quality assurance activities such as review of daily specimen tracking sheets (essential)
9. Triage tissues for special studies including, but not limited to enzyme histochemistry, fluorescent in situ hybridization, electron microscopy, and molecular studies. (essential)
10. Additional duties are performed as assigned
Required Qualifications:
1. Master’s degree in Pathologist Assistant program in progress and completed prior to start date required
- New graduates and out of state Master’s prepared Pathologist Assistants are expected to obtain the ASCP certification within 3-6 months of hire date
2. License ASCP Registration Required.
3. Advanced technical computer skills as required for technical support specific to functional area and related systems
Required Qualifications:
1. Registration by the American Association of Pathologist Assistants
2. Two years of experience in academic medical center setting
Competencies:
- Decision Making: Ability to make decisions that are guided by precedents, policies, and objectives. Regularly makes decisions and recommendations on issues affecting department
- Problem Solving: Ability to address problems that are broad, complex, abstract, and often non-recurring, requiring staff input, innovative, and creative, and lean diagnostic techniques to resolve issues
- Independence of Action: Ability to set goals and determines how to accomplish defined results with some guidelines. Manager/Director provides guidance and overall direction
- Written Communications: Ability to summarize and communicate in English moderately complex information in varied written formats to internal and external customers
- Oral Communications: Ability to comprehend and communicate complex verbal information in English to medical center staff, patients, families, and external customers
- Knowledge: Ability to demonstrate broad and comprehensive knowledge of standard concepts, practices, procedures and policies with the ability to use them in varied situations
- Team Work: Ability to lead and direct multiple collaborative teams for large projects or groups both internal and external to the Medical Center and across functional areas. Results have significant implications for the management and operations of the organization
- Customer Service: Ability to provide high-level customer service and staff training to meet customer service standards and expectations for the department. Resolves services issues in the department in a timely and respectful manner
Physical Requirements: Medium Work. Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and up to 20 pounds of force frequently. Job is physical in nature and employee needs to stand and/or move around through the majority of their shift
This job requires constant power grasping using both hands, frequent sitting, bending neck, keyboard use. There may be occasional walking, standing, bending waist, twisting neck, twisting waste, pushing/pulling using both hands. Reaching below shoulder height, lifting and carrying items weighing up to 10 lbs. Rarely there may be fine manipulation using both hand
Pay Range:
$57.75 – $77.72
The pay range listed for this position is the base hourly wage range the organization reasonably and in good faith expects to pay for this position at this time. Actual compensation is determined based on several factors, that may include seniority, education, training, relevant experience, relevant certifications, geography of work location, job responsibilities, or other applicable factors permissible by law. Compensation may exceed the base hourly rate depending on shift differentials, call pay, premium pay, overtime pay, and other additional pay practices, as applicable to the position and in accordance with the law.
