The posting
About Model Oncology
Model Oncology partners with community health systems to build and operate sustainable oncology programs. The organization does not function as a conventional consultancy that delivers a strategy and exits, nor as a traditional management services organization administering back-office functions at a distance. Model Oncology embeds within each partner system, operating alongside local teams and assuming accountability for program outcomes over the long term.
The organization's work encompasses program design, physician recruitment, pharmacy strategy, payer contracting, and the operational infrastructure required for communities to deliver high-quality cancer care close to home. Model Oncology holds itself to the standard of a genuine, accountable partner rather than a vendor.
The Opportunity
Model Oncology is recruiting a forward-looking physician leader to serve as Service Line Medical Director for an established oncology program in the Springfield, Missouri area. This is a rare leadership opportunity to help define the future of cancer care in southwest Missouri while remaining a practicing clinician directly serving patients and communities across the Ozarks.
The Medical Director will serve as the clinical and strategic leader for oncology, working in partnership with operational leadership to align clinical vision with program strategy. This individual will drive program growth and development, champion multidisciplinary care integration, lead physician development, and serve as the face of medical oncology both internally and across the broader medical community.
The role is designed to balance leadership and clinical practice: it offers meaningful influence over system-wide oncology strategy without collapsing into a full administrative silo, on the foundation of an established program with a clear growth mandate and an active commercial and academic trials platform.
Core Responsibilities
Strategic & Program Leadership
- Define and execute a long-term oncology program vision aligned with the health system's enterprise strategy.
- Partner with system leadership to advance cancer service line growth.
- Develop and oversee disease-site program expansion across solid tumor and hematologic malignancies.
- Lead capital and operational planning for medical oncology infrastructure, including clinical trial capabilities and advanced therapy programs.
- Serve as the primary medical oncology voice in service line strategy, quality committees, and system leadership forums.
Clinical Leadership & Quality
- Maintain an active clinical practice in Hematology/Oncology, demonstrating clinical excellence and peer credibility.
- Champion evidence-based clinical pathways, NCCN-aligned protocols, and quality outcome benchmarking.
- Oversee quality improvement initiatives across inpatient consult and outpatient oncology services.
- Drive integration across medical, surgical, and radiation oncology to advance a true multidisciplinary model of care.
- Ensure tumor board participation, multidisciplinary care conferences, and care coordination standards are met.
Physician Recruitment & Faculty Development
- Shape the recruitment, onboarding, and retention of hematology/oncology physicians and advanced practice providers.
- Build a physician development culture through mentoring, performance coaching, and subspecialty growth planning.
- Establish a compelling physician value proposition that positions the program competitively in the oncology talent market.
- Collaborate with system leadership on workforce planning and compensation structure.
Research & Innovation
- Expand the program's clinical trial portfolio across commercial, academic, and investigator-initiated studies to increase patient access to cutting-edge therapies.
- Pursue development of advanced therapy programs (e.g., cellular therapy and CAR-T referral pathways) appropriate to the community setting.
- Ensure cellular therapy attending physicians meet FACT-required competency standards, including documented training in applicable therapeutic areas and supervised clinical experience consistent with program accreditation requirements.
- Build relationships with academic oncology partners to support research infrastructure, fellowship affiliation, and CME.
- Champion the integration of precision medicine, biomarker testing, and molecular tumor profiling into routine care.
- Represent the program at regional and national conferences, contribute to peer-reviewed publications, and engage as a thought leader to elevate the program's profile and attract top physician talent.
Community & Referring Physician Relations
- Serve as the external face of the oncology program, building trust with referring physicians, primary care partners, and community stakeholders across the Ozarks region.
- Develop and maintain relationships with regional and academic oncology centers for complex case referral and collaboration.
- Support patient navigation, financial counseling, and social service integration as key components of patient-centered care.
Qualifications
Required
- MD or DO from an accredited institution.
- Board certification in Hematology and Medical Oncology (ABIM).
- Active or ability to obtain an unrestricted Missouri medical license.
- Demonstrated leadership experience in oncology.
- Proven track record building or growing oncology programs, recruiting physician talent, and driving quality outcomes.
- Collaborative leadership style with strong communication skills across clinical and administrative audiences.
Preferred
- Experience in a community-academic hybrid or regional health system oncology environment.
- Track record of clinical trial development or research program leadership.
- Minimum of two years of experience as an attending physician responsible for direct clinical management of patients in the applicable therapeutic disease area, consistent with FACT accreditation personnel standards for Clinical Program Directors.
- Prior experience serving as a Clinical Program Director or in a leadership role within a FACT-accredited cellular therapy program, including familiarity with FACT quality management, compliance, and personnel standards.
- Familiarity with Epic EMR or experience with NCCN-based chemotherapy order management systems.
- Demonstrated interest in rural and underserved population access to cancer care.
- Subspecialty depth in solid tumor or hematologic malignancy with breadth across both.
Compensation & Benefits
A competitive, market-aligned compensation package designed to attract and retain physician leaders. Specific details are discussed during the candidate process.
- Competitive base salary, leadership stipend, and quality/performance incentives.
- Sign-on bonus and relocation allowance.
- Loan repayment available.
- Full medical, dental, and vision coverage, plus a CME allowance.
- Occurrence-based professional liability coverage.
- 403(b) retirement plan with employer match.
- Call coverage of approximately 1 in 5 with advanced practice provider support, and no routine administrative call.
Life in Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third-largest city in Missouri and the cultural and economic center of the Ozarks. Known for its quality of life, it offers a low cost of living, excellent public and private schools, a thriving arts and restaurant scene, abundant outdoor recreation including Table Rock Lake and the Mark Twain National Forest, and a strong university presence.
Physicians consistently cite the community feel, proximity to nature, and family-friendly environment as reasons for choosing the region. The area is served by Springfield-Branson National Airport with connections to major hubs and sits within a three-hour drive of both Kansas City and St. Louis.
Why Model Oncology
Model Oncology is a fast-growing team doing work with meaningful real-world impact: expanding access to cancer care in the communities that need it most. This role offers a physician leader the chance to step into an established program with a committed system behind it and a clear path to growth, and to shape how community oncology is built and delivered across an entire region.
