Chief, Department of Psychiatry

Chief, Department of Psychiatry

Women’s College Hospital

University of Toronto

 

Women’s College Hospital (WCH) is seeking a dynamic and visionary academic medical leader to help bring a new hospital strategy to life in its Department of Psychiatry.

Based in downtown Toronto, on Canada’s renowned “Hospital Row”, 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. Its Department of Psychiatry integrates the perspectives of diverse institutions, collaborating and innovating with eight fully-affiliated hospitals and 11 community sites across Ontario.

Considered one of the most livable, safest and competitive cities in the world in recent international rankings, Toronto is fueled by its creative and diverse population.

WCH itself is a unique organization – an independent academic ambulatory hospital with no inpatient beds and no emergency department. 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. The Women’s College Research Institute (WCRI) is a “Top 40” research institution and is one of only a few hospital-based research institutes worldwide to focus on women's health. The WCH Institute for Health System Solutions and Virtual Care (WIHV) is breaking new ground on innovative models of ambulatory health care delivery in mental health and beyond for diverse and marginalized populations.


The launch of a new hospital strategy in June 2018 recommits WCH and its community to pursuing innovation in mental health among other areas, in part via a growing focus on virtual care and other models that support patients and primary care providers through just-in-time specialty backup and outreach services that bring care into the community. Our vision, “Health care revolutionized for a healthier and more equitable world”, speaks to our commitment to equity. Approximately 70% of our patients are women, reflecting a large focus on women’s health with respect to issues that uniquely or disproportionately affect women, including violence and trauma, reproductive health, and women’s cancers. We have additional areas of strategic focus in trans health, refugee health, and emerging work in Indigenous health.

The Department of Psychiatry

The WCH Women’s Mental Health Program has 3 key clinical areas focused on women’s mental health: reproductive mental health, which includes infant and child psychiatry; psychological trauma; and general psychiatry, which also houses the psychiatry addictions service and medical psychiatry programs. The Department has a growing team of about 20 psychiatrists 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. Research faculty are internationally-renowned with work in areas of e-health, reproductive mental health, trauma, and medical psychiatry. Also, the department’s robust community partnerships help deliver mental health care to women and marginalized groups throughout the WCH community.

The Chief of Psychiatry

Reporting to the hospital CEO through the Vice President, Medical Affairs and Health System Solutions, as well as to the Chief of Staff for issues under the purview of the Medical Advisory Committee, the Chief is responsible for aligning the Department with the strategy of the hospital in partnership with the Director of Specialized Medicine and Mental Health. The Chief works collegially with the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine and partner hospitals, and with WCH Foundation leadership to advance philanthropy. The Chief will have opportunities to grow partnerships with valued community partner organizations and build additional partnerships.

The Chief is expected to lead the Department in achieving excellence in education, research and innovation. Important roles also include managing the Department and workflow to meet the mission of the hospital; building skills and knowledge to advance health equity across the organization; developing and supporting innovations to advance health system solutions in mental health services; advancing the appropriateness agenda; ensuring a commitment to evidence-based care and acquisition of new knowledge in the Department; and enhancing a culture of continuous improvement through the use of data and appropriate metrics and indicators. Mentorship of the growing and dynamic group of physicians in the Department is a key component of the role.

Applicants must hold an MD and be certified or eligible for certification by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in Psychiatry, be eligible for licensure in the Province of Ontario, and are expected to participate in clinical practice at WCH. They must be eligible for an academic appointment at the rank of Associate or Full Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto. The successful candidate will be an outstanding academic leader, with proven excellence in prior complex environments.  Candidates should have a deep commitment to scholarly enterprise, with experience advancing peer-reviewed research and education in Psychiatry.

Salary for the role of Chief will be in the range of $140,000 - $175,000 CAD annually for 2 to 2.5 days per week, plus clinical compensation and other academic supports that typically range from $150,000 - $225,000 CAD annually (based, in part, on fee-for-service billings and sessional fees).  This full-time appointment is generally for a term of five years, with possibility of renewal for one additional term. English is the language of work. Interested candidates should submit a letter of intent and CV to:

Danielle Martin MD MPP CCFP FCFP

Vice President, Medical Affairs and Health System Solutions

[email protected]

416-323-6400 ext. 6384

76 Grenville Street, Toronto ON, M5S 1B2, Canada

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.