Introduction:

Women’s College Hospital (WCH) is seeking a dynamic and visionary medical leader to bring its primary care programs and community primary care partnerships to the next level of clinical innovation; lead the Department of Family & Community Medicine as a member of the hospital leadership team; and join the Family and Community Medicine leadership team at the University of Toronto.

WCH is an outpatient care hospital in Toronto, Ontario with a focus on health for women, health equity and health system solutions. It is a hospital designed to keep people out of hospital, where innovative ambulatory care models and the delivery of the highest quality education and research form the core of what we do. Based in downtown Toronto, WCH is a fully affiliated academic hospital of the University of Toronto, the largest and most prestigious research-intensive university in Canada and one of the top-ranked institutions worldwide. WCH is affiliated with the Toronto Academic Health Science Network (TAHSN), a dynamic network of academic health organizations providing leading edge research, teaching, and clinical care.

The Department Head will be part of a team that is revolutionizing the future of healthcare, joining an institution and a university where the possibilities for innovation, new discovery and system thinking are limitless. WCH sees a future of Healthcare Revolutionized, where it is setting a new pace for transformative redesign in healthcare. The hospital aims to confront gender and social inequities that threaten people’s health; to bring virtual care into the mainstream; and to reimagine how healthcare services are delivered to help solve the health system’s most urgent issues and close the health gaps for all.

The Department of Family and Community Medicine (DFCM) at the University of Toronto is the largest academic department of family medicine in the world, and home to a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Family Medicine and Primary Care. The DFCM has an ambitious strategic plan shared across its 15 core hospital sites centered on Community, Leadership and Partnerships.

Reporting to the Hospital President & CEO through the Vice President, Medical Affairs & System Transformation and Lead Medical Executive, the Head is responsible for aligning the Department with the strategy of the hospital in partnership with the Clinical Director of Primary Care. The Department Head works collegially with the University of Toronto Temerty Faculty of Medicine, partner hospitals and with the WCH Foundation leadership to advance philanthropy. The Department Head will have opportunities to grow partnerships with valued community partner organizations and build additional partnerships.

Clinical Programs in the WCH DFCM Portfolio:

The WCH Department of Family & Community Medicine (DFCM) has a growing team of physicians who work in close collaboration with providers from a variety of health disciplines. It is highly academic, supporting learners from a variety of health disciplines and students in undergraduate medical training, residency, and fellowships.

The DFCM, which includes the Women’s College Hospital Academic Family Health Team, is one of the largest Family Practice Units in Ontario, with over 40 Staff Physicians, 30 Residents and Fellows, and associated Healthcare Professionals, Nursing, Administrative and Support Staff. The team provides health care services of the highest quality, delivered in an innovative, academic, and interdisciplinary environment to 18,000+ rostered patients with over 80,000+ visits annually.

In addition, the Primary Care Program provides care for patients of all genders and age groups – from newborns to the elderly and includes:
• Women’s College Hospital Academic Family Health Team
• Crossroads Refugee Clinic
• Environmental Health
• Bay Centre for Birth Control
• Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Care Centre
• Peter Gilgan Centre for Women’s Cancers
The Department Head will also have a role in collaborating with the Ontario Health Team and community-based family physicians.

Job Description:

The Head, Department of Family & Community Medicine will play a leadership role in conceptualizing and managing academic development, strategic planning, clinical standards, communication, resource planning and management, fiscal accountability and change management. More specifically, the Department Head will:

1. Lead the Department of Family & Community Medicine at Women’s College Hospital. The Department Head will work in close partnership with their administrative counterpart, the Clinical Director, Primary Care & Peter Gilgan Centre for Women’s Cancers to lead a large, active team of physicians and health discipline professionals delivering comprehensive Primary Care within the context of a large interprofessional team.

2. Provide visionary leadership and operational oversight to advance the strategic plan of the hospital as it relates to Primary Care Programs. The Head will provide medical leadership across the Hospital’s Primary Care Programs including the Family Practice Health Centre, the Bay Centre for Birth Control, the Crossroads Refugee Clinic, the Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Care Centre, the Environmental Health Clinic, Family Practice Foot Clinic. The Department Head will:
a. Lead the implementation of new care models that exemplify the principles of patient-centered care.
b. Work with the other hospital departments on models of integration to advance the health of women and diverse communities, improve integrated care for people with complex chronic conditions, and implement health system solutions in the community and beyond.
c. Develop strategies to maintain high standards of clinical and resource utilization.
d. Work closely with Ontario Health Teams, the local Primary Care Network and build partnerships with community-based primary care providers.

3. Build and lead a team of dedicated medical professionals committed to excellence in clinical care, clinical innovation, and continuous quality improvement. As a medical leader responsible for medical human resources, the Department Head will:
a. Work with the Vice President, Medical Affairs & System Transformation and Lead Medical Executive to develop and implement a Medical Human Resources Plan in accordance with the Hospital’s Strategic Plan.
b. Take the lead in the Human Resources development of the Medical Staff within the Department, including recruitment and career development, with a strong focus on mentorship of junior and mid-career faculty.
c. Participate in the review of the performance of Medical Staff within their Department as well as their impact on corporate resources.
d. Assume responsibility for developing and monitoring clinical standards of practice, policies, and procedures, and participate in the resolution of issues regarding standards of practice in a manner consistent with hospital and regulatory body policies and procedures.
e. Play a leadership role in the education of both undergraduate and postgraduate trainees, as well as promoting continuing medical education activities within the Department.
f. Enhance a culture of continuous quality improvement through the use of data and appropriate metrics and indicators.

4. Lead the Women’s College Hospital Academic Family Health Team. As one of the largest Family Health Teams in Ontario, the Department Head will:
a. Provide oversight of the executive leadership of the Women’s College Hospital Academic Family Health Team.
b. Lead an inter-professional team to deliver care and service excellence in illness prevention, health promotion, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, and counselling to prevent emergency visits, admission to long-term care homes and other institutions, in partnership with the Clinical Director of Primary Care and the Peter Gilgan Centre for Women’s Cancers.

5. Pursue excellence in academic Primary Care by advancing the educational, research and scholarly objectives of the University of Toronto, Department of Family & Community Medicine and represent WCH at the University of Toronto, Temerty Faculty of Medicine. As a leader in the largest training program for family physicians in Canada, the Department Head will:
a. Further the goals and strategic plan of the Department of Family & Community Medicine, University of Toronto.
b. Represent WCH at a variety of tables at the University and partner with the Department Chair and colleagues across the Toronto Academic Health Sciences Network (TAHSN) to achieve shared goals and objectives.
c. Foster research, education, and quality improvement excellence across the Department of Family & Community Medicine at the hospital and foster collaborative research and education across the DFCM.
d. Support the development of academic strength among community-based family physicians in the broader geography served by WCH.

6. Participate actively in the community of medical leaders at WCH. The Department Head will work together with their colleague Department Heads to facilitate and advance joint projects in clinical care, research, and education. More specifically, the Department Head will:
a. Participate in the work of the Medical Advisory Committee, under the leadership of the Chair, actively pursuing quality and excellence in medical care.
b. Seek out opportunities for clinical and scholarly synergy across the hospital.
c. Collaborate with the hospital’s medical leaders of the Long-Term Care+ (LTC+) Program and SCOPE Program – a virtual, inter-professional care team that connects primary care providers to specialists, hospitals, community care and mental health resources.

7. Build partnerships to advance the goals of WCH beyond its walls. The Department Head will work closely and collaboratively with partner hospitals, the Ontario Health Team and local Primary Care Network, community-based partner organizations, philanthropic and other organizations to advance the strategic objectives of the hospital.

Qualifications:
The successful candidate will be:
1. An individual with membership in The College of Family Physicians of Canada or equivalent, eligible for licensure in Ontario, and eligible for an academic appointment at the rank of Associate or Full Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto.
2. An individual with a strong record of supporting others engaged in Primary Care education, research and/or scholarship.
3. A dynamic and compassionate leader, who demonstrates an empathetic, trusting, and responsive demeanor, with strong mentorship skills.
4. An individual experienced in interprofessional models of care and committed to interprofessional education and patient care.
5. A person with a strong commitment to social justice, equity and the health of women and diverse communities.
6. An individual with a people-oriented leadership style with the ability to inspire a shared vision and to challenge others to excellence.
7. A person with exceptional fiscal management skills, with an emphasis on linking quality outcomes with optimizing costs.

Accountability:
The Department Head will be responsible to the Chair of the University of Toronto, Department of Family and Community Medicine for academic activities within Primary Care. Within WCH, the Department Head will report:
1. To the Vice President, Medical Affairs & System Transformation and Lead Medical Executive. The Department Head will pursue their duties on contract to the hospital and as such will report to the President & CEO through the Vice President.
2. As per the Public Hospitals Act, the Department Head shall be accountable to the Board, through the Medical Advisory Committee Chair, for the quality of care provided by the Medical Staff of their Department.

Expectations & Term:
The successful candidate will be an outstanding academic leader and clinician, with proven excellence in prior complex health care environments. Candidates should have a deep commitment to scholarly enterprise, with experience in advancing peer-reviewed research and education in family medicine.

Salary for the role of Department Head will reflect an expected 2.5 days per week commitment, in addition to clinical compensation and other academic support based, in part, on fee-for-service billings and sessional fees.

The appointment is generally for a term of five years. After successful completion of the initial five-year appointment, a University/Hospital review will be conducted with potential reappointment for a final five-year term. Appointments over ten years will generally not be possible.
Should you be interested in being considered for this opportunity, please forward your cover letter, CV, and any other relevant material to:

Dr. Cynthia Maxwell
Vice President, Medical Affairs & System Transformation and Lead Medical Executive
cynthia.maxwell@wchospital.ca
76 Grenville Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 1B2, Canada
Last Date for Application: April 2, 2024

Women’s College Hospital is a fully affiliated teaching hospital of the University of Toronto and is committed to fairness and equity in employment and our recruitment and selection practices. We encourage applications from Indigenous peoples, people with disabilities, members of sexual minority groups, members of racialized groups, women and any others who may contribute to the further diversification of our hospital community. Accommodation will be provided in all parts of the hiring process as required under our Access for People with Disabilities policy. Applicants need to make their requirements known in advance.

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.