Freeman Family Chair and Medical Director, Palliative Care

Job description

Freeman Centre for the Advancement of Palliative Care has been a leader in improving the lives of patients with life limiting illness. The Freeman Centre was established in 1999 by a group of dedicated family physicians who identified the need for a community-based service to support palliative cancer patients and their families at home when they became too ill to return to their doctor’s office. The Centre was established through a strategic vision to provide excellence in clinical care, education, and research. The Freeman Centre team is composed of clinicians from various disciplines who work in multiple settings and maintain continuous contact with one another in order to effectively link the inpatient, ambulatory and community care settings. The team includes physicians, advanced practice nurses, nurses, social workers, researchers, chaplains, and other allied health clinicians. In this model, the patient’s family physician functions as an essential part of the team. The result of this team approach, which operates in collaboration with other care providers at NYG, makes the Freeman Centre model an ideal one for providing care. The spectrum of care and communication between team members is unique and exceptional among other NYG-based services and has been recognized as a “Leading Practice” by Accreditation Canada.

The Freeman Centre for the Advancement of Palliative Care is a unique model of palliative care delivery that strives to provide the best care through a consistent clinical team in the most appropriate setting. This provides continuity of care and a seamless transition for patients from time of referral to end-of-life. The goal of the program is to improve timely access to services and provide a positive healthcare experience for patients and families.

THE POSITION

Position Overview

The Freeman Centre for the Advancement of Palliative Care is seeking a physician to be the Chair in Palliative Care. The Chair will be a visionary leader with a desire to transform the future of palliative care delivery and supportive care at home. The Chair will have an incredible opportunity to advance this program by effectively translating research into practice through the adoption and implementation of innovative models of care delivery that can, ultimately, lead substantive system change in palliative medicine, both inside NYG and in the broader community. The Chair will also be the Medical Director of the Freeman Centre for the Advancement of Palliative Care and an active member of the Palliative Care Team.

This position is a five-year appointed term, renewable.

Reports to:

• Chief of Family and Community Medicine
• Vice President, Medical and Academic Affairs

Works in partnership with:

• Board of Governors
• Medical Advisory Committee
• Senior Leadership Team
• Program Director, Cancer Care and Ambulatory Program
• Medical Director, Cancer Care
• Other Program Chiefs and Medical Directors
• Physicians, Staff and Volunteers
• Patient and Family Advisors
• Learners
• Hospital Foundation
• Other external partners and stakeholders:
  • Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto, including the Division of Palliative Care
  • Ontario Palliative Care Network
  • North York Toronto Health Partners
  • Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care
  • Central and Toronto Central Health Regions
  • Partner Hospitals
  • Professional Associations
  • Government and Regulatory Bodies
  • Education and Training Institutions
  • Other community partners, health and social services/institutions

Key Leadership initiatives for the Chair will be to:

1. Actively participate in the vision of palliative care by advancing NYG’s unique community-based model.
2. Continue to put research into practice by embedding and sharing best practices and knowledge translation activities that can revolutionize palliative care delivery.
3. Build system capacity by advancing the discipline of palliative care among the University of Toronto - Toronto Academic Health Science Network and the research and education teams at NYG.
4. Champion the use of technology and other innovative tools and models of care to increase capacity for care in the home.
5. Continue to evolve an integrated and collaborative model of care by enhancing existing programs for home-based palliative care.
6. Optimize opportunities forleadership, innovation and improved health outcomes by actively seeking out new partnerships across a range of community and health service providers.
7. Work closely with colleagues in the Department of Family and Community Medicine, Internal Medicine and Psychiatry among others, to develop an integrated, patient-centred and seamless model of care for patients across the care continuum for patients with life limiting conditions.

Key Accountabilities:

• Act as a central voice to lead and empower NYG’s palliative care strategy.
• Lead the development of innovative care models with an inter-disciplinary team - including: physicians, advanced practice nurses, pharmacists, social workers, occupational therapists, dieticians, and spiritual representatives.
• Continue to engage the patient and family advisors in providing input and contributing to the key goals and objectives of the Centre.
• Advance the continuum of care from primary care, to the emergency department, to home care, to ensure quality of care for patients, families, and caregivers.
• Advance the Freeman Centre’s research goals that ultimately seek to raise the Centre’s profile, improve patient care and outcomes, and contribute to the growing body of best care practices for patients with advanced and complex illnesses.
• Use a formalized leadership platform to advocate for systemic shifts in palliative care.
• Serve as Medical Director, partnering with hospital leadership to optimize bed utilization, steward resources, and advance strategic planning for palliative care services.
• Serve as Division Head for Palliative Care in the Department of Family and Community Medicine.
• Represent palliative care on the Family Medicine Executive Committee, fostering collaboration, strategic alignment, and integration of palliative care priorities within departmental initiatives
• Advance knowledge translation activities by publishing in journals and disseminating information on a local, provincial, national and international level.
• Lead the development and application of quality improvement and evaluation frameworks to assess program effectiveness, drive continuous improvement, and ensure excellence in palliative care delivery.
• Collaborate with NY's Centre for Education and affiliated training programs, including the University of Toronto program, to establish a centralized palliative care education hub that supports trainee learning, curriculum development, and competency in palliative care.

• Act as teacherfor Family Medicine and other students/residents to train future physicians

  with a more comprehensive understanding of hospital and community-based palliative care.

• Support and leverage an interprofessional approach to care and education.

THE PERSON

Education/Professional Credentials

The new Chair will be an experienced, inclusive and visionary leader with a proven track record in medical leadership, clinical practice, teaching and applied research. Passionate about palliative care medicine and recognized as an effective and respected change leader with a keen interest in research, the new Chair will be committed to improving palliative care and supportive care services in a clinical setting as well as participating in broader systems-level change.

• Licensed by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, or eligible for licensure.
• Certification in Family Medicine, or its equivalent.
• Completion of recognized postgraduate training in Palliative Care, with a Certificate of Added Competence (CAC) or equivalent credential, or eligibility for appointment to such designation.
• Eligible for an academic appointment at the University of Toronto.

Experience/Competencies

• Possess a high level of professional competency as a Physician with clinical and leadership experience. Demonstrated leadership experience with a proven track record of achieving clinical, academic, programmatic, or organizational outcomes.
• Track record of medical education, teaching at multiple levels; and evidence of scholarly activity (research and/or professional activity) in palliative care.
• Demonstrated expertise in interprofessional collaboration amongst palliative care providers, including, community partners, physicians, advanced practice nurses, nurses, social workers, psychiatrists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, dietitians , spiritual care providers, patient experience partners, and volunteers.
• Demonstrated people management skills, including experience leading multidisciplinary teams, providing mentorship and coaching, supporting performance development, and fostering a culture of accountability, engagement, and psychological safety.
• Experience with program clinical protocol development and order set implementation and management.
• Highly effective interpersonal and communication (spoken and written) skills combined with excellent organizational skills, with demonstrated ability to achieve performance improvement outcomes.
• Recognized for championing service excellence.
• Willingness to advance the program’s vision through academic excellence.
• Ability to support the program’s strategy and its commitment to education, research and innovation.
• Evidence of ongoing continued medical education and current knowledge of research pertaining to palliative care.
• Actively encourage a spirit of co-operation amongst team members.

Application Instructions

Interested candidates are invited to submit the following:

• A cover letter or letter of interest outlining their qualifications, leadership experience, and interest in the position.
• A current curriculum vitae (CV).

Applications should be submitted by email to [email protected]. Please include "Freeman Family Chair and Medical Director Application" in the subject line.