The Head, Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences Nova Scotia Health

Head, Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences
Nova Scotia Health / Izaac Walton Killam Health Centre
Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine
Halifax, NS

Nova Scotia Health (NSH), the Izaak Walton Killam Health Centre (IWK)and Dalhousie University’s (DAL) Faculty of Medicine are inviting applications for the position of Head, Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences. This is a wonderful opportunity for an accomplished individual with demonstrated clinical, academic, and administrative leadership experience, and a vision to lead the clinical and academic mandates of this dynamic department in the years ahead.

About the Opportunity
The department head position is a five-year, limited-term appointment. The successful applicant will also be offered a continuing academic appointment in the department. The department head position is subject to renewal for a second five-year term, conditional on satisfactory annual performance evaluations and a positive review of the first term as head.

The head is accountable to NSH, the IWK and DAL for the delivery of clinical, academic, and administrative services that are local, provincial, and regional in scope. Dalhousie is the medical school for the three Maritime Provinces. As a result, the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences is involved in the teaching of medical students and residents throughout this region and is expected to take a leadership role in the development of health research programs across the full spectrum of care, and across the lifespan, from prevention and treatment to health services and population-based approaches. Ultimately, the department has a responsibility for assessing the needs and supplying medical specialists within the region.

The Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences is an integral part of NSH, the IWK and the Faculty of Medicine at Dalhousie University. The department’s clinical activities are conducted under the auspices of Nova Scotia Health and the IWK. The Department Head is the leader of secondary, tertiary, and quaternary clinical service in the Maritime Provinces. The mission is to deliver high quality health care, medical education, and to conduct research. The patient care activities are situated at QEII Health Sciences Centre (VG Site) for adult services, and the IWK Health Centre for pediatric services, both in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

About the Department, NSH, IWK, and DAL
The Department’s clinical faculty encompass all areas of ophthalmology, including comprehensive ophthalmologists (surgical retina, medical retina, glaucoma, cornea / external diseases, paediatric ophthalmology, orbit/ oculoplastics, neuro-ophthalmology, uveitis, and low vision). The Department has Faculty members who are geographically full-time at the Hospitals (both at the QEII and IWK) and
community-based ophthalmologists who work part time at the hospital and part time in their private practices.

For more information on the department, please see our website (https://medicine.dal.ca/departments/department-sites/ophthalmology.html).

Nova Scotia Health (https://www.nshealth.ca/) is the largest employer in the province. More than 23,000 employees, 2,500 physicians and 7,000 volunteers combine to provide care at more than 45 facilities throughout the province. The Central Zone provides core health services to 425,000 Halifax region residents and tertiary and quaternary acute care services to residents of Atlantic Canada. The QEII Health Sciences Centre and the Izaak Walton Killam Health Centre are the principal teaching hospitals affiliated with Dalhousie University, and a centre for health care research.

Dalhousie University (https://www.dal.ca/) is the leading graduate and research university of Atlantic Canada, with more than 20,000 students coming from 115 countries, registered in over 200 degree programs across 13 Faculties. Its medical school (https://medicine.dal.ca/) teaches scientific excellence and humanity in medicine, facilitates leading health research, influences social and health policy, and helps drive the regional economy. Through Dalhousie, the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences is affiliated with New Brunswick’s Horizon Health Network (https://horizonnb.ca/) and has additional affiliated staff throughout the Maritime provinces.

Experience and Qualifications
The successful candidate will have an MD Degree, hold or be eligible for medical licensure in Nova Scotia and hold or be eligible to sit for certification in a medical specialty in Ophthalmology by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.

To be considered for this role you are a consummate professional and you embody the principles of accountability, transparency, collaboration, and fairness. You are a visionary, team player and outstanding communicator, and you will use your skills and experience to create a positive and effective environment to enable excellent, collaborative care and learning. In addition, you have the ability to balance and achieve alignment among the academic and clinical mandates of the department and the strategic directions of the Faculty of Medicine, NSH and the IWK. You will also have demonstrated ability to guide, direct and administer academic responsibilities in undergraduate, postgraduate and continuing medical education, while promoting departmental research efforts.

Dalhousie University commits to achieving inclusive excellence through continually championing equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility. The university encourages applications from Indigenous persons (especially Mi’kmaq), persons with a disability, racialized persons, including persons of Black/African descent (especially African Nova Scotians), women, persons of a minority sexual orientation and/or gender identity, and all candidates who would contribute to the diversity of our community. For more information, please visit www.dal.ca/hiringfordiversity.

How to Apply Applications must include a cover letter, a curriculum vitae, and summary statements of clinical, teaching, research, and administrative interests and experience. You will also be prompted to complete a self-identification questionnaire via the application portal (PeopleAdmin), which is a required
component of the application . Apply here: https://dal.peopleadmin.ca/postings/13159 , by May 24, 2023.