Chief of Pathology : All Sites in Methuen, Massachusetts at Merrimack Health

At Merrimack Health, we are committed to pay transparency and equity. The annual base salary range is 375,000-$425,000 excluding fringe benefits and potential bonuses.

Your final base salary will be determined based on your education, experience, licensure, and internal equity considerations. Offers are typically made below the top of the range to support future salary growth.

Merrimack Health is the newly unified regional health system formed through the 2024 integration of Lawrence General Hospital with the Holy Family Hospitals (Methuen and Haverhill campuses). As of October 1, 2024, these three campuses operate together as one coordinated, mission-driven system: Merrimack Health Lawrence Hospital, Merrimack Health Haverhill Hospital and Merrimack Health Methuen Hospital.

Serving 13 cities and towns throughout the Merrimack Valley, the system delivers a full spectrum of high-quality care—from primary care to advanced specialty services in surgery, OB/GYN, cardiology, urology, and more. Merrimack Health is deeply committed to health equity, community engagement, and culturally competent care, with a focus on reducing health disparities across its diverse population.

Position Overview:

The Chief of Pathology is the senior physician leader responsible for the clinical excellence, regulatory compliance, and operational performance of pathology and laboratory services across all three community hospital sites within the system.

This role combines direct oversight of anatomic and clinical pathology services, including the core laboratory, blood bank, microbiology, transfusion services, and point-of-care testing, with cross-functional collaboration to align diagnostic practices with institutional goals for quality, safety, and efficiency. The Chief of Pathology ensures standardized, timely, and accurate diagnostic services, drives quality improvement, and serves as the primary physician liaison between the laboratory, medical staff, nursing, and hospital administration.

Key Responsibilities:

Leadership and Management

• Provide leadership and strategic direction for pathology and laboratory services across all three sites, fostering a culture of quality, safety, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Oversee recruitment, onboarding, evaluation, and professional development of pathologists and key laboratory medical staff.
• Conduct regular meetings with site laboratory leadership, pathology staff, and operational stakeholders to review performance, priorities, and standardization efforts.
• Mentor site-level laboratory medical directors or designated physician leads, ensuring local accountability within a consistent system-wide framework.
• Serve as the primary physician liaison for pathology with the medical staff, nursing leadership, administration, and system committees.

Clinical and Technical Oversight

• Ensure the delivery of high-quality, accurate, and timely anatomic and clinical pathology services across all three sites.
• Maintain a meaningful clinical presence through diagnostic sign-out, consultation, and participation in pathology-related clinical decision-making.
• Oversee the development, implementation, and review of standardized reporting practices, diagnostic protocols, and laboratory medical policies.
• Provide physician consultation regarding test selection, transfusion medicine, diagnostic interpretation, and appropriate laboratory utilization.
• Partner with clinical leaders to support service lines including oncology, surgery, infectious disease, internal medicine, obstetrics, and emergency medicine.

Quality Improvement and Patient Safety

• Lead quality improvement initiatives focused on specimen integrity, turnaround times, diagnostic accuracy, blood utilization, critical value reporting, and reduction of pre-analytic, analytic, and post-analytic errors.
• Monitor and report key laboratory quality and operational metrics across all sites.
• Chair or co-chair the Laboratory Quality Committee, Transfusion Committee, or other appropriate pathology-related committees.
• Participate in event reviews, root cause analyses, and corrective action planning for lab-related safety events, transfusion reactions, and diagnostic delays.
• Collaborate with infection prevention, pharmacy, nursing, and medical staff leadership on patient safety and quality initiatives.

Regulatory, Accreditation, and Compliance Oversight

• Ensure compliance with all applicable laboratory regulatory and accreditation standards, including CAP, CLIA, Joint Commission, AABB if applicable, and state requirements.
• Oversee inspection readiness, proficiency testing, competency oversight, and response to deficiencies across all three sites.
• Review and approve laboratory medical policies, procedures, and quality management plans.
• Ensure appropriate physician supervision and medical direction for all laboratory sections, including point-of-care testing.
• Maintain current knowledge of evolving regulatory expectations and communicate changes to stakeholders as needed.

Operational and Administrative Duties

• Provide medical leadership in collaboration with system and site laboratory directors, managers, and supervisors on staffing, workflow, and equipment planning.
• Partner with administration and finance on budget development, capital planning, instrumentation strategy, send-out testing, and vendor relationships.
• Standardize laboratory processes, test menus, and reporting practices across the three sites where clinically and operationally appropriate.
• Support efficient specimen transport and coordination among sites and any central or reference laboratory partners.
• Collaborate with IT and informatics teams on LIS, EMR integration, result routing, order set design, and clinical decision support.
• Promote appropriate test utilization and evidence-based laboratory stewardship to reduce unnecessary cost and variation.

Strategic Planning and Program Development

• Contribute to the strategic planning and long-term development of pathology and laboratory services across the health system.
• Identify opportunities for growth, innovation, and improved service delivery, including outreach, digital pathology, telepathology, molecular testing, and workflow redesign.
• Analyze testing trends, clinical demand, referral patterns, and community needs to support decisions about in-house expansion or reference lab use.
• Represent pathology in system leadership forums, Medical Executive Committee, quality committees, and other governing bodies as appropriate.
• Support multidisciplinary programs such as tumor boards, blood management initiatives, infection prevention efforts, and service line development.

Performance Metrics

Examples of annual performance metrics may include:

• Surgical pathology and cytology turnaround time.
• Critical value notification compliance and timeliness.
• Specimen labeling and identification error rate.
• Blood utilization appropriateness and transfusion reaction review completion.
• Proficiency testing performance and inspection readiness.
• Laboratory physician and clinician satisfaction metrics.
• Standardization and strategic initiative completion across all three sites.

Qualifications:

Required:

• MD degree.
• Completion of an accredited residency in Anatomic Pathology, Clinical Pathology, or combined AP/CP.
• Board certification in Pathology.
• Active, unrestricted medical license and ability to obtain privileges at all three hospital sites.
• Demonstrated experience with laboratory quality management, accreditation readiness, and regulatory compliance.
• Strong communication, organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Experience with quality improvement initiatives and data-driven decision-making.

Preferred:

• Prior experience as Chief of Pathology, Laboratory Medical Director, or equivalent in a community hospital or multi-site system.
• Experience with transfusion medicine oversight, blood bank operations, and point-of-care testing governance.
• Familiarity with laboratory information systems and EMR integration.
• Additional leadership or administrative training such as MMM, MHA, MBA, or formal physician leadership development.
• Experience participating in tumor boards, cancer program support, or multidisciplinary service line leadership.

Compensation & Benefits:

• Competitive compensation package, including base salary and incentive structure.

• Comprehensive benefits: health, dental, retirement, CME allowance, malpractice coverage with tail, and paid time off.

• Opportunities for professional growth within an integrated health system.

About Merrimack Health

• Merrimack Health is the region’s first health care system serving the Merrimack Valley, prioritizing care and services based on the needs of its patients. Serving communities across Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire, Merrimack Health includes hospitals in Lawrence, Haverhill, and Methuen, as well as a network of community-based physician practices. A recognized leader in heart care and stroke treatment, maternal and child health, orthopedics, surgical care, trauma and emergency services, behavioral health, and outpatient programs, Merrimack Health delivers trusted, compassionate care close to home.

Why Join Merrimack Health?

• Play a key leadership role in a new hospital system committed to serving a diverse community. Competitive compensation and opportunities for professional development. Benefit from the support of a dynamic leadership team focused on medicine excellence. Contribute to a culture that values quality, innovation, and collaboration.

Location(s)

• Methuen and Lawrence, Massachusetts

Join Us!

To apply: please send resume and cover letter to: provider.recruitment@lawrencegeneral.org or to Physician Recruiter, Stefan Marquis at: stefan.marquis@merrimackhealth.org