What Does a Cancer Center Director Do?

A cancer center director is a position that involves overseeing a medical facility that treats cancer patients. Individuals in this profession are responsible for monitoring the operation of a cancer center and ensuring that patients receive the best care possible. In most cases, the general duties of a cancer center director include routinely inspecting a facility, hiring and training staff, supervising staff, interacting with patients and monitoring finances.

Routinely inspecting all departments of a healthcare facility is one important aspect of this position. To comply with government regulations and maintain patient safety, it's critical for a cancer center director to oversee her entire facility. This includes checking for cleanliness, equipment sterilization, and availability of emergency equipment like fire extinguishers. Since many cancer centers deal with radiation, it's also important to ensure the correct handling of radioactive materials.

Another integral part of this job is hiring and training staff. Since quality care is essential for the well being of patients, it's extremely important for a cancer center director to employ knowledgeable people with a high level of expertise. Once she hires new staff members, it's also her responsibility to oversee the training process. She may personally train new employees in some cases. In others, she may assign this duty to a particular staff member.

Along with integrating new staff members to a medical facility, it's also the duty of a cancer center director to continually supervise the staff. Since employee performance is often a reflection on her, it's critical for a cancer center director to ensure that all employees are performing job duties adequately. This responsibility includes providing feedback to staff and taking disciplinary action when necessary. Along with this, she may hold periodic meetings to inform employees of policy changes and discuss departmental issues.

Interacting with patients is another essential part of being a cancer center director. To provide the best service possible, it's necessary to identify patient needs and figure out how to best meet those needs. Since every person has a unique set of circumstances, it's important for a cancer center director to figure out how to keep patients comfortable while administering treatments. This aspect of the job requires a person with a compassionate nature and sound interpersonal skills.

In addition, most directors are also responsible for monitoring the finances of a facility. This mainly includes things like developing a budget and creating financial reports. Consequently, a cancer center director also needs to have considerable mathematical skills.