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Head, Department of Surgery

By nicole bell | September 21, 2023

The Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia (UBC) invites applications for the position of Head, Department of Surgery at UBC. This position is for a five (5) year term with the possibility of renewal, subject to satisfactory review. It is expected that the successful candidate will qualify for and be offered a full-time UBC appointment at the rank of Associate Professor or Professor with tenure and will also hold the C.N. Woodward Chair in Surgery within the Faculty of Medicine. The anticipated start date is July 1, 2025, or upon a date to be mutually agreed.

This position is located within a health-care facility. Therefore, this position requires successful verification of full vaccination against Covid-19 to be provided prior to the start date, as required by the provincial health mandate.

The UBC Faculty of Medicine is committed to fostering excellence in education, research, and service that contributes to the health of individuals and communities locally, nationally, and internationally. The Faculty of Medicine, together with its partners including British Columbia’s Health Authorities, provides innovative programs in the areas of health and life sciences through a province-wide delivery model. The Faculty teaches students at the undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate levels and generates more than $350 million in research funding each year.

The mission of the UBC Department of Surgery is to serve the surgical care needs of our local and global communities, and to improve health outcomes through basic and clinical research, education of medical professionals, and innovation in clinical techniques, technology, and health systems. The Department consists of more than 600 physicians, surgeons, scientists and educators and over 70 administrative, research and technical staff in nine divisions distributed across British Columbia. Specialty training programs are offered in Cardiac Surgery, Colorectal Surgery, General Surgery, Neurosurgery, Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Pediatric Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Radiation Oncology, Surgical Oncology, Thoracic Surgery and Vascular Surgery. The Department is also home to the Branch for Global Surgical Care.

The Department Head will provide leadership by creating and advancing a provincial departmental mission, strategic plan and goals that align with the Faculty and the University. The Head will foster and maintain an environment that promotes the Faculty’s values of excellence, mutual respect, caring, and integrity where civility, diversity, opportunity, and inclusion are valued and central to all encounters across the Faculty, the University, and the communities.

The successful candidate will have a proven track record in academic and/or administrative leadership roles, demonstrated success in supporting the career development and mentorship of faculty members, demonstrated commitment to education across the spectrum of learners, and strong record of research and innovation and/or educational scholarship in an area related to Surgery. The candidate will also have demonstrated experience in team building, fostering engagement and promoting inclusivity across working and learning environments. The successful candidate will also have experience in working with Health Authority leadership to create academic integration of teaching and research into clinical service delivery and Health Human Resource Planning, particularly in areas of academic expertise. The successful applicant will show evidence of building, managing and maintaining high-quality and productive relationships across cultural differences, and the ability to communicate and interact with empathy, understanding, and respect of diverse perspectives and behaviours. At the rank of Associate Professor, the successful candidate will have demonstrated evidence of successful teaching and ability to direct graduate students, evidence of sustained and productive scholarly activity, and must be willing to participate in the affairs of the Department and the University. At the rank of Professor, the successful candidate will have demonstrated appropriate standards of excellence in teaching, have received wide recognition in their sustained and productive scholarly activity, and participated significantly in academic and professional affairs.

A detailed job description is available in the Dean’s Office, Faculty of Medicine for those who wish to review it. Please inquire at the email address below. The successful candidate will contribute to fostering an environment that promotes inclusivity and embodies values of respect, integrity, compassion, collaboration, and equity. Equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice are essential to academic excellence, as well as to fostering an inclusive community for voices that have been historically underrepresented or discouraged. Candidates who bring diverse perspectives and lived experiences are encouraged to apply as we strive to enhance diversity, inclusiveness, socio-cultural representation, and perspective of the Department.

An application package should include a letter of application that addresses scholarly, professional and creative work, teaching, administrative service and experience fostering collaboration, accompanied by a detailed curriculum vitae, and names of four arm’s length references. Please also provide a brief statement (1-2 pages) that describes your specific role in past or current initiatives that contributed to advancing equity, diversity and inclusion and the resulting impact on academic (research/scholarship, teaching/learning), professional (non-academic or clinical work), and/or community (local, national, international community-based) settings. Applications should be directed to:

Dermot Kelleher, MB, MD, FRCP, FRCPI, FMedSci, FCAHS, FRCPC, AGAF
Dean, Faculty of Medicine
Vice President, Health, Faculty of Medicine, UBC
c/o Ms. Nicole Bell, Manager, Searches and Reviews
Email: fom.searches@ubc.ca
Subject Line: Head, Department of Surgery

Candidates, internal or external to the University, are eligible to apply. Review of applications will begin January 2, 2024 and continue until the position is filled.

At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students, and is essential to fostering an outstanding work environment. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace, and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career.

The University is committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive and equitable work environment for all members of its workforce. An inclusive work environment presumes an environment where differences are appreciated, recognized, and integrated into current structures, planning, and decision-making modes. Within this hiring process we are committed to creating an inclusive and equitable process for all candidates (including but not limited to people with disabilities).  Confidential accommodations are available on request for applicants who are short-listed. Please contact Ms. Nicole Bell via email at fom.searches@ubc.ca.

To learn more about UBC’s Center for Workplace Accessibility, visit the website here https://hr.ubc.ca/CWA.

The UBC Vancouver Campus is located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of thexʷm əθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. The City of Vancouver is located on Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations territory.

UBC — One of the World's Leading Universities. As one of the world's leading universities, the University of British Columbia creates an exceptional learning environment that fosters global citizenship, advances a civil and sustainable society, and supports outstanding research to serve the people of British Columbia, Canada and the world.

Our Vision: To Transform Health for Everyone.

Ranked among the world’s top medical schools with the fifth-largest MD enrollment in North America, the UBC Faculty of Medicine is a leader in both the science and the practice of medicine. Across British Columbia, more than 12,000 faculty and staff are training the next generation of doctors and health care professionals, making remarkable discoveries, and helping to create the pathways to better health for our communities at home and around the world.

The Faculty — comprised of approximately 2,200 administrative support, technical/research and management and professional staff, as well approximately 650 full-time academic and over 10,000 clinical faculty members — is composed of 19 academic basic science and/or clinical departments, three schools, and 24 research centres and institutes. Together with its University and Health Authority partners, the Faculty delivers innovative programs and conducts research in the areas of health and life sciences. Faculty, staff and trainees are located at university campuses, clinical academic campuses in hospital settings and other regionally based centres across the province.

UBC hires on the basis of merit and is committed to employment equity. All qualifies persons are encouraged to apply. Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority.