Radiation Therapist - $10K Sign On Bonus

The American College of Radiation Oncology; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 85,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Stanford Health Care is seeking a Radiation Therapist to join our Allied Health team in Palo Alto. The RTT will administer radiation therapy under the direction of our radiation oncologists, ensuring patient safety and precision in treatment delivery.

Responsibilities include simulations, dosimetry support, and active participation in quality and process improvement initiatives within a collaborative academic medical center.

Qualifications

• ARRT-RTT registered Radiation Therapist with at least two years of experience.
• Current BLS certification is required.
• CA-RTT license or eligibility demonstrated.
• Strong patient care, documentation, and teamwork skills.

Responsibilities

• Deliver advanced radiation therapy treatments under physician orders.
• Maintain safety and quality through department protocols and proper documentation.
• Perform simple dosimetry calculations and assist with simulations as needed.
• Support quality improvement and patient education within the department.
• Collaborate with RTTs, physicists, and oncologists to optimize patient flow.

Skills

ARRT-RTT Certification

BLS Certification

ARRT License

Education

ARRT-RTT licensure

CA-RTT Certification

BLS Certification

Tools

ViewRay system

RefleXion system

CyberKnife system

Job description

At Stanford Health Care, we see our allied health practitioners as critical contributors to our pioneering services. Working at the heart of medicine, we invite you to bring your very best to our team. Whether you're a Radiation Therapist, Physicist Assistant, Dosimetrist, Patient Admin Specialist, or one of dozens of other specialties, there's a place for your talents here. Explore our careers page to find your next opportunity!

Changing the Future of the Radiation Therapy: Radiation Therapists serve patient populations including Adults, Pediatrics, Veterans, and BMT amongst others. Our Allied Health team members serve on the front lines with opportunities to:

• Treat local, national, and international patients.
• Administer innovative treatment, such as total skin and total body therapy utilizing advanced machines like ViewRay, RefleXion, Cyberknife, IORT, Varian True Beam with Vision RT, and soon Proton Therapy System.
• Participate in clinical trials in partnership with the Stanford School of Medicine to be at the forefront of new treatments and methods of treating cancer.
• Research based facilities within an academic university medical center.

Be Part of a Tight Knit Team: Out departments foster a close-knit, collaborative, and supportive culture to deliver top-tier care to our patients and we take pride in the quality of work shaping the healing process for patients and their families. The Radiation Therapy team values professionalism, patient-centric care, and mutually support both within and outside their roles.

Opportunities to Grow: Allied Health professionals in Radiation Therapy have access to:

• Working in Radiation Therapy at Stanford Health Care involves utilizing a diverse range of cutting-edge treatment machines, such as the RefleXion system, which is a PET image-based machine, ViewRay, and MRI imaging treatment device, Cyberknife, Intraoperative Radiation Therapy, Brachytherapy, and soon-to-come Proton System.
• Advanced knowledge through ongoing onsite and webinar trainings.
• Explore opportunities in dosimetry, education, research, and leadership.
• Participate in quality committees and process improvement projects to establish standards of best practice.

A Brief Overview

The Radiation Therapist, also known as an RT(T), is a health care professional that is responsible for administering radiation therapy with precision and accuracy under the direction of the radiation oncologist. The Radiation Therapist provides excellent customer service and care to our patients, and they often serve as the primary liaison between patients and other members of the health care team based on their daily interactions with patients. He or She is sensitive to the needs of the patient and uses good communication as well as patient assessment and monitoring skills. The Radiation Therapist possesses and maintains a working knowledge of radiation protection and safety, radiation oncology techniques, radiation physics, and human anatomy. The Radiation Therapist is a critical thinker who uses independent, professional, and ethical judgements in all aspects of their work. In addition to administering radiation therapy treatments, the general patient care duties of the Radiation Therapists may include performing quality assurance, patient simulation, scheduling, fabrication of immobilization, documentation in the medical record, simple dosimetry calculations, and after hours on call patient care. Additionally, the Radiation Therapist also is an active participant in quality and process improvement activities in the department. The Radiation Therapist II performs the duties of the Radiation Therapist with increased responsibility and independence in practice, having met additional requirements and demonstrated competencies beyond that of the Radiation Therapist I (Radiation Therapist).

This job description covers all classifications for RTTs within the organization. All RTTs must meet all elements of the Essential Functions, Qualifications, and Supervision. There is a voluntary Career Ladder for RTTs who are interested in promotions for expertise and contributions to the institution as well as the profession. Promotion is determined based on the Radiation Therapist Career Ladder document. Here is a description of the various levels:

Here is a description of the various levels:

• LEVEL I: Entry level
• LEVEL II: Meets Career Ladder criteria for RTT II
• LEVEL III: Meets Career Ladder criteria for RTT III
• LEVEL IV: Meets Career Ladder Criteria for RTT IV

What you will do:

• Demonstrates proficiency and competence in delivering advanced radiation therapy treatments to patients according to written prescriptions, treatment plans, and orders provided by the Radiation Oncologist.
• Provides safe, accurate patient care by consistently following department protocols, policies, and procedures that have been established.
• Recognizes deviations from prescribed treatment delivery and reports all deviations immediately to the Manager in addition to filing incident reports, if applicable.
• Performs simple dosimetry calculations for urgent or emergent patient care, as needed.
• Performs patient simulations, including fabrication of immobilization, as required
• Participates in brachytherapy procedures, as required
• Fabricates beam shielding devices, as required
• Uses C-I-CARE principles and techniques to provide thorough explanations to patients and their families of procedures prior to performing them. Responds effectively to patient concerns and refers medical questions to appropriate personnel.
• Uses C-I-CARE principles and practice when interacting with colleagues. Maintains an atmosphere of caring, concern and support for patients and their families, visitors, medical staff and co-workers on a consistent basis.
• Demonstrates an attitude of positive contribution and teamwork to the department.
• Observes patients for expected and unexpected reactions to treatments and communicates this to appropriate staff members. -Reinforces patient education/side-effect management information and indicates non-compliance to medical/nursing staff.
• Ensures the quality of patient care through complete and accurate documentation in the electronic health record.
• Displays a thorough understanding of treatment and simulation related billing procedures. Reviews treatment/ simulation documentation and billing daily for accuracy and completeness and works closely with radiation oncology coders.
• Anticipates and facilitates patient flow by scheduling patients on the treatment and simulation units to optimize patient satisfaction and department efficiency and ensures physician and resource availability. Alerts the manager when patient volumes and scheduling exceed staffing levels and business hours.
• Troubleshoots and problem solves effectively and efficiently using lean methodologies. Communicates appropriate issues to the Radiation Therapist- Lead or Manager for proper handling and potential escalation
• Maintains a safe and orderly patient treatment room. Checks safety controls and devices in the treatment room daily and reports problems to the Manager.
• Performs warm up and quality assurance checks of equipment, as necessary.
• Actively participates in problem solving and process improvement initiatives.
• Performs other related and incidental duties as needed or assigned.

Education Qualifications

Requirement met by License/Certification requirement.

Experience Qualifications

At least two (2) years of experience as an ARRT registered Radiation Therapist.

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Knowledge of principles, practices and procedures involved in the operation of modern radiation therapy equipment and systems including simulation, imaging, and treatment procedures.
• Knowledge of the human anatomy and proper positioning of the patient to provide treatment as prescribed.
• Knowledge of principles and methods to ensure safety and quality control.
• Knowledge of training, coaching and mentoring techniques.
• Knowledge of scheduling and billing procedures.
• Ability to consistently demonstrate a high level of clinical reasoning and knowledge in the assessment and treatment of patients.
• Ability to direct, lead, coach, and instruct Radiation Therapists and support staff as well as plan, assign and review work performed by them.
• Ability to keep abreast with current developments in clinical practice.
• Ability to assume responsibility for department projects and initiatives, such as safety, training, continuing education, performance and quality improvement.
• Ability to communicate effectively and establish and maintain cooperative and productive working relationships with others

Licenses and Certifications

• Basic Life Support (BLS) Certification
• ARRT-RTT
• CA-RTT