The incumbent's primary responsibilities are to provide radiation therapy to patients as prescribed by Radiation Oncologist and under the general supervision of the Chief Radiation Therapist. Other tasks include start-up, QA, and shut-down of equipment, electronic field imaging, charge capturing, simulation and on-call.

Duties

Functions: a. Schedule patients in a manner so as to optimize linear accelerator/simulator times while maintaining flexibility for emergency cases. b. Prepare room and equipment for patient according to prescription regarding immobilization devices, field size, treatment distance, lead protection devices, etc. c. Perform and document daily accelerator/simulator warm-up and QA procedures. Report erratic or malfunctioning equipment to Chief Therapist, Physicist and/or Engineer. d. Perform simulations. e. Administers contrast materials and should have a thorough understanding of protocol before, during and after contrast is given. Observe patient for reactions to contrast. Is certified to insert IV needles for administration of contrast material when necessary. f. Prepare and construct equipment, such as immobilization, treatment, and protection devices. Perform mold room duties. g. Review prescription, diagnosis, treatment plan, identification, and chart for accuracy prior to treatment. h. Properly identifies patient by confirming verbally name, social security number and/or date of birth. Technologist must wear proper and visible identification. i. Educate, prepare and reassure patients and their family members by answering questions. j. Transfer patient safely to treatment couch giving special attention to catheters, intravenous drips, etc. k. Position patient for treatment with accuracy according to prescription. l. Explain procedure to patient, means of communication during treatment and procedure to follow if emergency arises during treatment. m. Administer prescribed doses of radiation to specific body site using radiation therapy equipment according to established practices and standards with minimal supervision. n. Maintain visual and audible communication with patient during treatment. o. Practices radiation safety in order to reduce exposure to patients, visitors, staff and self. Technologist must wear film badge in compliance with regulations. p. Records all parameters involved with each patient, including daily and accumulated doses, treatment time, field size and type of radiation used. q. Adheres to hospital infection control and safety policies/techniques with emphasis on sterile technique; the storage of sterile supplies; the disposal of body fluids and 'sharps'; proper attire; hand washing practices; and continuing education. r. Responsible for weekly stocking and inventory of all radiation oncology supplies and related materials. s. Public Law 97-35 requires persons hired after 1987 who administer radiologic procedures meet the credentialing standards in 42 CFR, Part 75, must be certified as radiographers in their fields and maintain annual licensure renewal. CPR certification and recertification is required in accordance with American Heart Association guidelines. t. Performs irregular hour emergency simulation and radiation treatment. Requires the technologist be available within 30 minutes from receipt of call so proper and effective emergency care can be given to the patient. u. Continually reviews new developments in the field of Radiation Therapy. Is continually on the alert to improve quality of treatment utilizing the new technologies available. The purpose of this review is to provide the patients with the best possible treatments. v. Maintain patient markings. Observe patient for side effects such as skin irritation, nausea, and hair loss to assess patients' reaction to treatment. w. Obtain electronic radiation treatment field images. (OBI, CBCT, MV) and photos. x. Maintains an accurate schedule and performs charge capturing. y. Assist in training and orienting new staff and students. z. Participate in departmental PI (Performance Improvement) activities. Work Schedule: 8-4:30 M-F Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

BASIC REQUIREMENTS. Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States (U.S.). Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified candidates in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7407(a). Education. Individuals must have successfully completed a program in therapeutic radiologic technology, evidenced by a certificate or an associate's or higher degree accredited by the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology or other accrediting bodies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and the subsequent completion of a 12-month ED accrediting body-approved program in therapeutic radiologic technology. Public Law 97-35 requires that persons who administer radiologic procedures meet the credentialing standards in 42 C.F.R. Part 75. They must have successfully completed an educational program meeting or exceeding the standards described in that regulation and is accredited by an organization recognized by the ED, and be radiation therapists certified by the ARRT in Radiation Therapy (T). Certification. All applicants must be certified in therapeutic radiologic technology by the ARRT in Radiation Therapy (ARRT (T)). All applicants must be certified in therapeutic radiologic technology by the ARRT in Radiation Therapy (ARRT (T)). Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service. English Language Proficiency. TRTs must be proficient in spoken and written English. See 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). GRADE DETERMINATIONS. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: Therapeutic Radiologic Technologist, GS-10 (1) Experience. At least one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level directly related to the position being filled. (2) Assignments. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity, range of variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Employees at this level serve as advanced staff TRTs independently carrying out procedures which have varying assignments. This includes basic and advanced treatment modalities and procedures, which exceed the full performance level. Employee will be assigned the responsibility of emergency on-call treatments, if applicable, and perform simple Monitor Unit calculations. Other assignments include but, are not limited to performing CT simulations, troubleshooting for basic problems and machine issues, maintaining treatment rooms and equipment in a clean, neat and safe condition and assisting patients to and from the treatment room. Regardless of the nature of the specific assignment, the work must be of sufficient scope and complexity to meet the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform at this level. (3) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all the KSAs below: (a) Skill in independently performing machine warm up procedures and interpreting output levels compared with established thresholds adhering to the principles of radiation safety and all aspects of quality assurance. (b) Ability to independently perform patient chart reviews using an electronic medical record and the Record and Verify System or other similar treatment delivery systems. (c) Ability to independently perform all basic and complex CT simulations, including independently operating the CT equipment, following directives, designing custom immobilization for reproducible set-ups, obtaining optimal imaging, completing accurate data transfer for treatment planning and providing accurate and precise patient documentation. (d) Ability to utilize a Linac's On Board Imaging system to interpret complex images. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-10. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-10

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address Durham VA Medical Center 508 Fulton Street Durham, NC 27705 US
• Name: Gary Byles
• Phone: 919-286-0411 X4949
• Email: [email protected]