Clinical Coach, Palliative

Requisition Details:

Employment Status: Temporary, Part-time (0.4 FTE)

Program Name: Palliative

Number of Hours Bi-Weekly: 30

Work Schedule: Days

Anticipated End Date: March 2026

On-Call: No

Existing Vacancy: Yes – we're currently hiring candidates for an existing vacancy in this position

Job Summary:

The Clinical Coach is responsible for working with participating community organizations to drive practice change, with a focus on improving access to quality clinical care, aligned to the Palliative Care Health Services Delivery Framework in the Community ("The Delivery Framework") and the Ontario Palliative Care Competency Framework. The Clinical Coach's work will complement the work of educational organizations, such as Ontario CLRI and Pallium Canada.

Key Responsibilities:

• Ensure alignment of community implementation with the guidance of the Ontario Palliative Care Network
• Support the advancement of equity, inclusion, and diversity across Ontario's health care system.
• Provide palliative care coaching and mentoring to staff and clinicians in participating community organizations to build primary-level palliative care competencies.
• Collaborate with leaders of community organizations on local service integration, and change management initiatives, using quality improvement methodologies to achieve results.
• Consult on clinical care when the complexity of the patients' needs is beyond the existing competencies of providers (in the community organizations).
• Lead engagement and community-building activities with participating organizations.
• Provide support to Indigenous communities and Indigenous organizations for their implementation efforts, where Indigenous communities wish to be involved, in collaboration with regional partners.
• Co-create the regional Delivery Framework implementation plan with Ontario Health, including required measurement and reporting.
• Foster regional collaboration and contribute to broader system integration.
• Attend all regional planning meetings and contribute to the regional palliative care implementation plan, especially plans for education and practice change.
• Update the regional implementation team on challenges and opportunities in the community.
• Support the regional advisory groups and subject matter experts who provide clinical leadership.
• Maintain comprehensive records and support data collection for measurement and reporting.
• Provide feedback on key learnings related to the coach role, along with input and reviewing regional progress as required.
• Clearly articulate key messages that resonate across different partner groups and audiences.
• Support Ontario Health Team planning and/or implementation of palliative models of care (where there is readiness).
• Develop and present materials to community partners that express palliative care concepts and implementation plans effectively.
• Critically evaluate the quality of palliative care in participating community organizations and guide the creation of a quality improvement plan to address any gaps.
• Collaborate with leadership teams from participating community organizations to identify strengths and gaps in the palliative care they currently provide and in the relevant provider policies and practice documents.
• Promote/provide palliative care education in participating community organizations, aligned to the Ontario Palliative Care Competency Framework.
• Provide informal, case-based educational opportunities (coaching) for health service providers in community organizations, incorporating principles of adult learning.
• Provide palliative care mentoring for health service providers in the community.
• Guide palliative care quality improvement (QI) and practice change initiatives in participating community organizations to implement the Delivery Framework (with an initial emphasis on the prioritized recommendations) by: providing education on QI methodologies and tools; encouraging the application of QI to improve patient care; tracking and evaluating progress; and sustaining best practice by updating policies and procedures.
• Offer consultation as a palliative care expert to service providers in person, onsite, by telephone, by videoconference or through email.
• Provide limited and occasional direct patient care

Common Responsibilities:

• Promotes the goals and values of VON and their role as an integrated community care provider.
• Promotes a safe and healthy workplace ensuring workplace conduct and activities are in accordance with the provincial Occupational Health and Safety Act and Regulations and compliant with the VON Safety Management System, including all Policies, Safe Work Practices and Procedures.
• Abides by all VON policies and work practices.
• Abides by all confidentiality and protection of personal information policies, regulations and practices and ensures appropriate safeguards are in place within their role.
• Works in collaboration with other staff in a team approach to service delivery.

External and Internal Relationships:

• Develop relationships with key partners to establish trust, credibility, and respect.
• Participate in relevant provincial level committees, working groups and task forces.
• Build internal and external relationships, to enhance communication among all staff.
• Engage with First Nations, Indigenous, Métis and urban Indigenous people as they self-determine their own approach to palliative care.
• Collaborate with leaders of community organizations on local service integration and change management initiatives.

Education, Designations and Experience:

• A degree in a registered health care discipline (e.g., RN, RSW, NP) A graduate degree is an asset (e.g., MScN, MSW).
• Minimum five (5) years' experience in practice in palliative care.
• Experience with research and/or program evaluation with knowledge of evidence-based processes, including appraisal of research, application of findings and collaboration on research.
• Experience working with large-scale quality improvement initiatives.
• Experience working with a range of roles, disciplines, and levels of staff in different health care settings.
• Experience designing education to effectively address palliative care training needs of interprofessional learners.
• Expert knowledge of models of consultation and their application with individual, team and community service providers.
• A good understanding of regional priorities and local health care needs, within Ontario's health care landscape.
• Knowledge of relevant legislation and reporting requirements, including the Fixing Long-Term Care Homes Act, the Excellent Care for All Act and the Compassionate Care Act and other pertinent legislation and regulations related to professional practice.
• Experience supervising clinical staff is preferred.
• Additional training in gerontology and project management experience are assets.
• Fluency in French and/or another language is an asset.

Skill Requirements:

• Strong clinical coaching and debriefing skills, with both individuals and teams.
• Strong consultation skills.
• A commitment to developing equity-based, evidence-informed approaches for delivering palliative care services for all people in Ontario, regardless of their age or illness.
• Ability to work well under pressure and use good judgment in assessing difficult situations.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Aptitude for proactive problem solving, using strong critical thinking, and negotiating skills.
• A demonstrated ability to develop, deliver and evaluate training and coaching efforts.
• An ability to develop relationships based on trust, compassion, and empathy.
• Strong active listening and interpersonal communication skills for one-on-one coaching.
• Excellent communication skills and experience with culturally responsive teaching
• A demonstrated focus on person-centered care.
• Proficiency in educational technologies (e.g., webinars, apps) as well as knowledge of Microsoft Outlook, Word, Teams, PowerPoint, and Excel.

Other:

• Access to reliable and efficient mode(s) of transportation to enable travel between community organizations.
• Willingness to travel regularly during the day as well as periodically overnight(s) to support sites and attend meetings.
• A current and original satisfactory Criminal Records Check is required upon the start of your employment.

Working conditions and physical demands: This role requires a detail-oriented approach in a dynamic environment, with physical activity including lifting, carrying (using proper techniques), bending, reaching, kneeling, and other movements that emphasize good body mechanics. Individuals in the role are required to walk, sit, stand, and climb stairs throughout the day, with some tasks requiring fine hand movements.