Position Profile

Position Profile

The Opportunity

Hamilton Health Sciences is seeking applications and nominations for a new Chief of Critical Care. The new Chief will provide leadership to the Department of Critical Care, working with Hamilton Health Sciences to ensure the provision of excellence in Critical Care Medicine across our acute care sites. In collaboration with the Academic Chairs of Critical Care, Medicine and Anesthesia, along with the Faculty of Health Sciences at McMaster University, the Chief will promote and support the academic mission of the Critical Care. He or she will also work in a collaborative manner with Local Health Integration Networks (LHIN) partners to address regional critical care issues.

Hamilton Health Sciences

Hamilton Health Sciences is a family of six hospitals (Hamilton General, Chedoke, Juravinski, McMaster Children’s, McMaster University Medical Centre, and St. Peter’s Hospital) and the Juravinski Cancer Centre, serving more than 2.3 million residents of Hamilton and central south and central west Ontario. As the second largest hospital in Ontario, Hamilton Health Sciences is the regional centre for burns, trauma, cardiac, stroke, pediatrics, digestive diseases, high-risk obstetrics, orthopedics and rehabilitation. With more than 900 beds in operation, 40,000 annual inpatient visits, 25,000 OR cases, and 515,000 ambulatory care visits, Hamilton Health Sciences offers an exciting and challenging work environment. Through affiliation with McMaster University and partnerships with many health care providers and community agencies, Hamilton Health Sciences is at the forefront of innovation and excellence in care, service and research. Please see www.hamiltonhealthsciences.ca.

Department of Critical Care

The Department of Critical Care Medicine has 18 members, 10 of whom have primary appointments and 8 secondary appointments in Critical Care.

The current McMaster Critical Care Fellowship Program Director is from the HHS Department of Critical Care. Seventeen of the 18 Intensivists provide traditional 24/7 ICU weeks of call and all 18 provide non-traditional or Rapid Response Team type critical care services.

The clinical services covered by the medical Department members include:

Juravinski Hospital ICU : (4 Intensivists)

19 Level 3 beds + 1 arrest bed in two geographically separate locations (14 in ICU and 5 +1 in the CICU). Mixed medical-surgical ICU

General Hospital ICU’s:

ICU West– 16 Level 3 beds. Cardiac Surgical ICU. (7 Intensivists)

ICU East – 16 Level 3 beds. Mixed medical-surgical ICU but predominantly NeuroSurgery and Trauma. (6 Intensivists)

ICU South – 12 Level 3 beds + 2 Burns Level 3 beds. Same patient population as ICU East. (All 13 Intensivists above)

McMaster University Medical Centre Women’s Health Program has 1 Level 3 ICU and 2 Level 2 Step-down beds and is staffed by an Intensivist-led hospital funded Rapid Response Team/Code Blue Team. Weekly coverage is provided by 1 Intensivist (who restricts his practice to this site) and other Intensivists from both the Juravinski and Hamilton General sites, as well as from St. Joseph’s Health Care Hamilton.

The Hamilton General Hospital has a provincially funded Rapid Response Team which is staffed by the remainder of this site’s Department members.

There is a Site Lead for Juravinski, ICU West, ICU East/South and each Rapid Response Team.

Key Strategic Issues:

1.  Department Leadership Profile: Continue to develop and build on the leadership profile the Department has locally, provincially and nationally.

2.  Hospital Leadership: The Department of Critical Care interfaces with a wide range of programmes across our acute care sites. The Chief needs to develop strong working relationships with the medical and administrative leadership of these programmes. He/she needs to provide leadership and advice to the organization and the programmes around the organization and delivery of Critical Care across HHS, particularly with respect to standardization of care and resource utilization.

3.  Visibility: The Chief will need to be visible to all areas of the Department. With 6 adult Critical Care Units, the Chief needs to develop a leadership presence across the organization, and to actively reach out and engage the entire department in its functioning..

4.  Multidisciplinary Care: Working with the Medical Leadership the Chief of Critical Care needs to develop a Human Resource Plan which promotes the multidiscipline nature of Critical Care.

The Position

The Chief of the Critical Care is responsible for patient care, education and research within the Department and for management of the affairs of the Department.

Accountability

The Board through the Medical Advisory Committee with respect to medical diagnosis, care and treatment of patients;

The Dean of the Faculty of Medicine through the Chair of the Department for academic matters related to McMaster University of Hamilton; and

The VP Medical & CEO or delegate on matters of planning, management and administration of the Department.

General Responsibilities

·  Promotes the hospital's Mission, Vision and Values within the organization and the health system.

·  Provides organizational leadership consistent with the hospital's Vision and Values.

·  Facilitates the development of partnerships with other bodies within the health system and the academic community.

·  Fosters an environment that promotes research and education.

·  Promotes an inter-disciplinary approach to patient care, education and research and supports organizational effectiveness through a commitment to teamwork.

·  Contributes to the effective clinical and financial operation of the hospital.

·  Supports the Board, its committees and the activities of the hospital's Foundations.

·  Collaborates with medical leaders to ensure optimal functioning of their areas of responsibility.

·  Provides assistance in ensuring compliance with accreditation standards throughout the hospital

·  Aligns personal goals with those of the Organization, as identified by the Board of Directors, the President and Chief Executive Officer, and senior planning committees.

Specific Responsibilities

Patient Care

·  Demonstrates high professional standards in delivering care to patients

·  Supervises the professional care provided to patients of the hospital by members of the Department's medical staff.

·  Represents the Department on the Medical Advisory Committee.

·  Advises the Medical Advisory Committee and the President & CEO with respect to the quality of medical diagnosis, care and treatment provided to patients of the Department.

·  Ensures that the Department maintains a quality assurance program and that it undertakes initiatives to improve the quality of medical care.

·  Organizes medical staff within the Department to ensure the provision of optimum care to all patients treated by members of the Department.

Academics

·  Ensures an effective system for supporting academic activities within the Department in collaboration with the respective Academic Chairs.

·  Supports the organization and co-ordination of educational programs within the Department for undergraduate, postgraduate and practising physicians and for other health professionals in co-operation with McMaster University of Hamilton and its affiliated institutions.

·  Ensures that members of the Department undertake continuing education to maintain an acceptable level of clinical and academic competency.

·  Encourages, supports and monitors research consistent with the hospital's vision and strategic plan for research.

Management

·  Advises hospital management regarding effective utilization of hospital resources related to clinical practice, while ensuring optimal patient care and consistency with Departmental academic objectives.

·  Reports to the Medical Advisory Committee on management policies affecting medical care.

·  Organizes the activities and functions of the Department and ensures effective mechanisms of communication with members of the Department to inform and seek input on hospital and University policies and procedures, rules, goals and objectives, strategic planning activities and resource allocation.

·  Develops and implements policies and programs within the Department.

Planning

·  Participates in the ongoing formulation of the mission, strategic plan, objectives and goals of the hospital.

·  Undertakes human resource planning for the Department that is consistent with the hospital's Strategic Plan.

·  Reviews proposals for new appointments to the Medical-Dental-Midwifery Staff and make recommendations for approval to the Medical Advisory Committee within the context of approved medical staffing plans.

Staff Responsibilities

·  Recruits qualified medical staff and ensures that ongoing practice patterns, including resource and income considerations, are consistent with and further the realization of the mission, objectives and goals of the hospital and the academic objectives of the University.

·  Ensures orientation and support of new staff members.

·  Encourages, supports, motivate and supervises members of the Department, and fosters an atmosphere of collegiality within the Department and the hospital.

·  Implements disciplinary measures where a member of the Department contravenes the requirements of the Bylaws, the Rules or hospital and Department policies, procedures and rules.

·  Oversees the competency of members of the Department and ensures that individuals do not exceed the privileges granted to them or their current competence.

·  Reviews the performance and privileges of the members of the Department annually through a structured review process and makes such recommendations to the Medical Advisory Committee concerning reappointment.

·  Delegates responsibility to the Head of each Division within the Department, as appropriate, and supervises that individual's activities.

·  Develop and regularly updates policies and rules for the Department.

Qualifications

·  Physician licensed or able to be licensed in the Province of Ontario.

·  Fellowship certification by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (or equivalent).

·  Eligibility for appointment to the Medical-Dental-Midwifery Staff of the hospital.

High Level Competencies

·  Excels at negotiation and conflict resolution.

·  Demonstrates an understanding management within complex organizations.

·  Demonstrates excellent oral and written communication skills.

·  Ability to undertake creative and strategic thinking.

·  Ability to work collaboratively with medical leaders, medical staff and other members of the hospital staff.

Chief Job Profile

Topic / Department Chief
Definition / Ø  Department Chiefs are appointed by the Board following a search process defined by the Hospital-University Affiliation Agreement.

Reporting Relationship

/ Ø  Externally reports to the University Department Chair
Ø  Internally reports to the VP Medical Affairs and Quality, (the MAC and ultimately the Board)
Operational Planning and Management
Responsibilities / Ø  * Responsible to the VP Medical Affairs and Quality on matters of planning, management and administration of the Department.
Ø  Collaborative role with the relevant Program Directors in monitoring of Program budget and taking steps to correct variances due to individual physician activities
Ø  * Ensures within the overall context of the Department Chief’s scope of responsibility that decisions made within Department are supportive of the relevant Programs and do not have negative impact on their effective resource management.
Resource Utilization / Ø  Supportive and collaborative role with specific focus on issues related to medical care
Ø  Supportive and collaborative in the development of care plans and protocols to standardize and optimize utilization of Program resources
Ø  Supportive and collaborative of the Program Director in changing medical practice where such practice is not consistent with agreed upon utilization of resources.
Capital Equipment and Facilities / Ø  Collaborative role
Ø  Represents departmental needs for capital equipment through the annual budgeting process
Committee Structure & Meetings / Ø  * Holds regular meetings with the department to inform and seek input on Hospital & University policies and procedures, rules, goals and objectives, strategic planning activities, and resource allocation decisions
Ø  Attends other committees as assigned
Communication / Ø  * Communicates hospital and university issues to the department on a regular basis
Ø  * Communicates departmental planning and activities to the appropriate Program
Academic Mandate
Responsibilities / Ø  * Responsible for supporting and ensuring the fulfillment of the academic (teaching and research) mission for their department, in co-operation with the appropriate Department Chair
Ø 
Ø 
Education Activities
(Undergrad) / Ø  * Responsible for supporting departmental education activities and ensuring appropriate participation by members
Education activities
(Postgrad) / Ø  * Support departmental postgraduate educational activities and ensure appropriate departmental participation.
Research / Ø  Encourage, and support research activities within Department
Ø 
Quality Mandate
Responsibilities / Ø  * Responsible to Board for quality of care at a departmental level through the MAC with respect to quality of medical care provided by individual departmental members.
Ø  Monitors and is responsible for the professional care provided to patients by members of the Department and advises the MAC with respect to the quality of medical care
Ø  Responsible for clinical outcomes, to the extent that these outcomes are related to professional performance and competence of individual members of the Medical Dental Midwifery Staff and will collaborate with the appropriate Program Director(s) with respect to other clinical quality issues / indicators
Ø  Ensure that a continuous quality improvement plan is in place with regards to physician professional activity
Strategic Planning
Ø  * Participate in the ongoing formulation of the mission, strategic direction and goals of the hospital, and ensuring a fit between them and the strategic plans of the department
Ø  * Develop annual plan for department that includes and supports Program and organizational operating plan(s)
Ø 
Human Resources
Recruitment and Medical Human Resource Planning / Ø  * Develop and maintain an up to date human resource plan for the Department and its divisions that is consistent with the University and Hospitals strategic directions and is scoped to meet the annual operating plan parameters of the hospital
Ø 
Staff Development and Retention / Ø  * Maintains an active program for staff development including orientation for new members
Ø  Take disciplinary action when needed
Ø  * Maintains job descriptions for all members of the department, and ensures a regular performance review is undertaken.
Ø  Makes annual recommendations regarding re-appointment of Medical Dental Midwifery Staff
Ø 

August 2009

* Denotes – Primary Responsibility

Hamilton:

The city is very close to some of the best urban pleasures to be had in Ontario – the splendour of Canada’s most important gardens, the Royal Botanical Gardens, the famous Bruce Trail, and an abundance of conservation areas, water parks and walking paths. Overlooking the waters of Lake Ontario, Hamilton is a city whose proximity to Toronto and the Niagara Peninsula makes it an ideal destination for the traveler who wants to get close to the heart of the real Ontario. UNESCO named Ontario’s Escarpment a World Biosphere Reserve in 1990. This designation recognizes the Niagara Escarpment as an internationally significant ecosystem for its special environment and unique environmental plan. For more information, please visit: www.tourismhamilton.com