FAMILY PHYSICIAN- Nuxálk First Nations Led Primary Care Centre
Good Day! Come live, work and play in the beautiful Bella Coola Valley, one of the most gorgeous places on Earth. If you are an adventurous soul, this is an opportunity for you. Embrace the rich culture of the welcoming Nuxálk people. Hiking, fishing, rafting, exploring, photography, wildlife - we have it all. Discover why the “Freedom Road” and the “Hill” have an exceptional story to tell. Our Valley has many cultural landmarks and storied areas of importance. This pristine Valley welcomes you to a place where great waterfalls abound and mighty rivers are home to all the Salmon species plus Steelhead, trout, and char. Come see a Grizzly. Make a home in a place where the mountains touch the sky.
About the Centre
The Nuxálk First Nations Led Primary Care Centre (FNPCC) will be situated at the Nuxálk Health & Wellness Centre (NHWC) at 500 Highway 20, Bella Coola, BC. The Centre will provide culturally safe primary care attachment for 1250 First Nations patients living in the Nuxálk and Ulkatcho First Nation communities.
The Nuxálk FNPCC will soft-launch wholistic primary care services from this centre, offering a range of traditional wellness and mental health services. Additional mobile clinic services will bring services closer to home to Ulkatcho Nation at the Anahim Lake Nursing Station located at 6674 South Clinic Lane, Anahim Lake, BC. As a long-term solution, a new primary care facility will be built next to the existing NHWC building.
The Nuxálk FNPCC aims to provide culturally safe, trauma specific primary care services for First Nations people in Nuxálk Territory and the Bella Coola Valley. The Centre will serve community members through interdisciplinary staff who will work together with the existing teams through a collaborative team-based care approach. It is expected that the primary care centre will initially operate Monday to Friday (excluding Statutory Holidays) during regular business hours (this may change over time due to operational needs).
About FNHA
The First Nations Health Authority is a diverse and transformational health organization of professional, innovative, and dedicated team members and leaders.
The first of its kind in Canada, FNHA works as a health-and-wellness partner with BC First Nations to support self-determination and decision-making to improve health outcomes.
The First Nations Health Authority is committed to respecting diversity within our workforce; preference will be given to individuals who identify as First Nations, Inuit, or Métis. All interested First Nations, Inuit or Métis individuals are encouraged to apply. The First Nations Health Authority has a mandate to increase First Nations representation in the workforce. Applicant skills, perspectives and lived experience may be matched for this role, or other opportunities within the FNHA.
Title: Family Physician - Successful applicants eligible for a 0.2 FTE medical lead
Contract: Contract up to a 1.0 FTE-typically 1680 hours a year
Location: Nuxálk Nation, Bella Coola, BC (includes on-reserve services)
Physician Master Agreement Full Scope range placement of $302,113- $377,641 subject to whether scope of services includes facility-based coverage. Additional Rural Retention Program Premium of 25.62%. Compensation is scaled to Full Time Equivalent. Successful applicants may also indicate if they wish to be considered for a 0.2 FTE medical lead
FNPCI Initiative
The Nuxálk FNPCC is one of 15 Provincial First Nations-led Primary Care Initiatives (FNPCIs) aiming to improve access to primary health-care services for First Nations people across BC in a way that is culturally safe and closer to home. The FNPCI is part of the province’s primary care strategy, which is integrating team-based care in communities throughout B.C. and changing the way primary care is delivered with the creation of primary care networks in partnership with the Regional Health Authorities.
One of the main objectives of the FNPCI is to develop new First Nations Primary Health Care Centres in rural and urban locations across the province. The centres will provide access to quality primary health care services for First Nations people and their families. In order to meet the health and wellness needs of First Nations people, it is very important that primary care be culturally informed where Indigenous ways of knowing and being are woven into services. The aim is for clients to feel safe, welcomed, valued, respected and heard when they access care services.
About the Role
The Family Physician will be the most responsible provider for a patient panel but is expected to collaborate in team-based care for patients and support the practice of Western and Traditional Wellness approaches to patient health. The Family Physician will work in collaboration with an integrated and collaborative team that includes traditional wellness practitioners, registered nurses, mental health clinicians, occupational therapist, administrative staff and other community-based services provided by the Nuxálk Health & Wellness Centre. A minimum panel size is typically expected to reach 650 per 1.0 FTE by year 3, to be confirmed in the clinical service contract. The Family Physician will be expected to travel occasionally to Ulkatcho Nation at the Anahim Lake Nursing Station to be available for appointments within the community.
Responsibilities
The Family Physician (FP) will be responsible for practicing with cultural humility, to provide primary care in a culturally safe, team-based environment that recognizes the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of the client (and family) to provide whole person care, in compliance with policies and procedures of acceptable BC health and wellness regulations and standards.
About you
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You are passionate about supporting First Nations individuals and families on their health and wellness journeys;
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You have an active practicing license in good standing with the College of Physicians of BC (CPSBC);
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You have training in Cultural Safety & Humility or are willing to take this training;
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Ideally you have experience working with First Nations people and communities and providing culturally safe care;
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You demonstrate a true understanding of, or are willing to learn, Nuxálk ways of knowing and being, the political, cultural, and spiritual protocols of the Nuxálk community; and
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Current valid driving license and willingness to travel.
Why Work at the Nuxálk FNPCC
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We have a common foundation at FNHA through our Vision and Seven Directives to guide us in our daily work.
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What happens to communities and people we serve happens to us—we care for and respect one another. What happens to us happens to community and the people we serve—we strive for excellence and believe First Nations deserve the best we have to offer.
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We are wellness champions. We have the historic opportunity to achieve transformative change in First Nations health & wellness, and an obligation to make the most of this opportunity.
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We are for change makers. Those who are called to act, open to cultural understanding and teachings, and undaunted by unique challenges. We are a young organization, still growing and fast changing.
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We provide meaningful work rich with transformational learning opportunities.
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When you work at the Nuxálk FNPCC, you will truly make a difference in your life and for many others.
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Find purpose beyond your profession. “It starts with me”. Here, your work changes lives, starting with your own.
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We work together, not apart, with our beautiful and culturally rich First Nations communities in British Columbia.
First Nations Health Authority is a first of its kind in Canada and joining our family means being part of a collaborative, diverse and compassionate organization committed to innovating, transforming and redesigning health service delivery for First Nations communities in BC. Leading with culture, all FNHA medical staff are encouraged to continue with their cultural safety and humility learning and engagement activities. A range of relevant courses are available to medical staff who will complete at least one within the first year of joining FNHA.
How to apply
If this sounds like the opportunity for you, please email your CV to [email protected].
Anticipated Hire Date: As soon as possible
For more information about us, please visit: www.fnha.ca/about/work-with-us
For information about https://www.fnha.ca/what-we-do/cultural-safety-and-humility and for information about Land Acknowledgements
If you have any inquiries or issues please contact Medical Affairs at [email protected]
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