Head, Department of Family Medicine

The Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University is recruiting an academic leader for the Department of Family Medicine and its network of teaching sites throughout the Maritimes.  This is an outstanding opportunity for an experienced and accomplished physician with proven leadership, vision, clinical and academic experiences to lead this dynamic department.  

As the academic Head, the incumbent will be responsible for the administration and development of teaching and research programs in the Department and its affiliated teaching sites across the Maritimes.

The Department of Family Medicine at Dalhousie University takes a collaborative approach to the advancement of education, research and comprehensive clinical care to meet the needs of Maritime communities. It delivers a continuum of education programs to support the vision of comprehensive family medicine in these diverse communities. Its research and scholarly activities are focused on advancing primary care policy and practice. It is actively working to form partnerships with communities, health authorities, governments and other academic health organizations to advance family medicine education, research and clinical services that meet the health priorities of the Maritimes. With leadership and support from the Dean’s Office, the Department is leading a charter project to promote the visibility of and interest in Family Medicine as a career among Dalhousie medical students.

The Department’s current strategic plan is described at this link: DFM Strategic Plan

The Department’s academic programs are distributed in large and small communities across the three Maritime provinces. Medical students are placed in practices throughout the three provinces, with five longitudinal integrated clerkships. Its postgraduate academic leadership is focused in nine sites including Fredericton, Saint John and Moncton in New Brunswick; Prince Edward Island; and in the Annapolis Valley, South West, North Nova, Cape Breton and Halifax in Nova Scotia. The Department’s most recently established sites are North Nova based in Truro with learners distributed into Amherst, Truro and New Glasgow. A new teaching community site has been added to the Cape Breton program in Inverness and an additional residency position added in South West Nova.

The Department Head will be appointed for a five-year position, potentially renewable. A Continuing Appointment in the Department of Family Medicine will also be offered to the successful candidate.

The role of Head requires dynamic leadership, enthusiasm and vision in academic and clinical domains, together with management skills to influence education, research and service, and to align strategically and operationally across health systems in three provinces. The incumbent must be a strategic systems-level thinker with superior interpersonal skills to negotiate, nurture and leverage opportunities that maximize productivity through collaboration, partnership and integration of academic and clinical practice.

To be considered for this role you are a consummate professional and embody the principles of accountability, transparency and fairness, and you have a proven track record of leadership success.  The successful candidate will have an MD Degree, hold or be eligible for medical licensure in Nova Scotia and hold Certification in Family Medicine by the College of Family Physicians of Canada or its equivalent.  Evidence of research productivity and experience working collaboratively with governments and health authorities are required.

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply. Dalhousie University is committed to fostering a collegial culture grounded in diversity and inclusiveness. The university encourages applications from Aboriginal people, persons with a disability, racially visible persons, women, persons of minority sexual orientations and gender identities, and all candidates who would contribute to the diversity of our community.

To apply for this exceptional opportunity, applications must include a curriculum vitae and a summary statement of clinical, teaching and research interests.  A completed Self-Identification Questionnaire, which is available at www.dal.ca/becounted/selfid will need to be included.  Review of applications will begin on May 24, 2019 and will continue until the position is filled. Applications should be sent to the attention of:

Dr. Michael Teehan

Chair, Family Medicine Search Committee

C/o Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University

Room C-205, CRC, 5849 University Ave.

Halifax, NS  B3H 4H7

(or by email: [email protected])

Dalhousie University web site is www.medicine.dal.ca.

The Department of Family medicine web site is:

https://medicine.dal.ca/departments/department-sites/family.html