Project Associate, Faculty of Nursing

Position Overview

The Faculty of Nursing invites applications for a Project Associate. This Fixed Term Recurring Part-time position is for approximately 6 months (based on length of grant funding), with the possibility of extension.

The quality of work varies with job stressors being moderate and includes deadlines and attention to detail. The Project Associate will be required to work between Monday and Friday. Workdays may vary in length depending on workload. This position has no direct reports. The work environment requires time spent at a computer, on the telephone, in virtual meetings, conducting observations in a clinical intensive care setting, and travel to each of 14 neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in Alberta. Travel under 150 kms from the university will be with personal vehicle with mileage reimbursed. Travel between 150 kms and 350 kms from the university will be by rented vehicle. Travel more than 350 kms from the university will be via economy air.

Reporting to the Principal Investigator, the position requires independent judgment and decision-making in day-to-day operations, and professional comportment while conducting project business. Decisions will be guided by the project management plan protocols and guidelines. This position requires independently knowing where to look for information and contributing to discussions about solutions to complex problems in a team setting. The work requires a high degree of accuracy, organization, and the ability to identify and prioritize tasks in order to meet deadlines. The incumbent must also be able to work with diverse teams of researchers and clinicians with varying levels of experience to ensure equitable involvement and learning throughout the project. 

The purpose of the position is to efficiently support key operations of the project entitled, Reducing NICU Length of Stay in Alberta: Scale and Spread of Alberta Family Integrated Care (FICare). The incumbent will conduct quarterly fidelity visits at each of the 14 NICUs. Based on observations during the fidelity visits, the incumbent will write structured reports for Local Site Implementation Teams and generate brief fidelity report cards for distribution to staff on implementation progress of Alberta FICare. The incumbent will generate parent experience survey reports from Qualtrics. The incumbent will participate in meetings, led by a member of the Alberta FICare core team, with Local Site Implementation Teams to debrief findings of fidelity visits and support ongoing implementation strategies at sites. The incumbent will contribute to project status reports, presentations, newsletters, manuscripts, and other knowledge translation materials, and perform other operations-related tasks, as needed.

Position Description

Summary of Key Responsibilities (job functions include but are not limited to):

Administrative: 

• Administrative duties applicable to project management
• Ensure compliance with lab protocols and file management system
• Administrative duties related to scheduling meetings and recoding minutes
• Employee compliance training
• Entering recurring part-time hours in PeopleSoft
• Process personal expense claims in PeopleSoft

Project Assistance:

• Liaise with Principal Investigator to clarify information, tasks, and deliverables
• Manage fidelity visits in accordance with project timeline (ensure fidelity visits are scheduled and completed for each site each quarter)
• Oversee management and accuracy of fidelity visit observations
• Facilitate and participate in stakeholder meetings
• Participate, provide ideas, and engage in team meetings
• Prepare correspondence, spreadsheets, reports, and presentations for the Alberta FICare project team
• Maintain fidelity with the project management plan
• Identify and report project risks to the Alberta FICare Project Team
• Support data analyses and interpretation, and manuscript preparation on other projects in PI’s program of research, if needed

Other Duties:

• Act professionally while conducting business at the NICU sites, and in AHS/Covenant Health and University of Calgary meetings.
• Exercise good judgement and adhere to ethical conduct and privacy requirements according to the Health Information Act
• Maintain personal competency in skills as required by identifying learning needs and pursuing appropriate learning activities (i.e., TCPS-2 Core, EDI)

Qualifications / Requirements:

• Master’s degree in a health discipline and a minimum 5 years’ experience in a quality improvement or research environment
• Previous experience conducting quality improvement, research, or clinical practice advancements in a health care environment, preferred
• Demonstrated application of project life cycle
• Experience with change management processes; implementation science experience would be an asset
• Experience with data collection strategies and interpretation of results
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills, particularly in dynamic multidisciplinary teams
• Ability to work collaboratively within a team environment
• Skilled at building strong working relationships and managing stakeholders
• Proficient with computer systems, especially Microsoft Office Suite
• Experience with reference management software (EndNote) would be an asset
• Experience with Qualtrics would be an asset
• Analytical reasoning, problem-solving, and decision-making skills
• Ability to complete tasks under own initiative with minimal supervision
• Strong time and priority management skills in order to set and meet deadlines
• Demonstrate own initiative 
• Ability to adapt and be flexible in a changing environment
• Local area and provincial travel will be required
• Valid Class 5 driver’s license

Application Deadline:  December 10, 2021

We would like to thank all applicants in advance for submitting their resumes. Please note, only those candidates chosen to continue on through the selection process will be contacted.

Additional Information

This position is part of the AUPE bargaining unit, and falls under the Specialist/Advisor Job Family, Phase II.

To find out more about management and staff opportunities at the University of Calgary and all we have to offer, view our Management and Staff Careers website. For more information about the Faculty of Nusring visit Careers in the Faculty of Nursing.

COVIDSafe Campus Strategy

The University has implemented a new Vaccination Directive that requires all faculty and staff to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by January 1, 2022. You will be required to upload proof of vaccination prior to commencing your duties. Please review the COVIDSafe Campus website for further information and access to additional resources.

About the University of Calgary

The University of Calgary is Canada’s leading next-generation university – a living, growing and youthful institution that embraces change and opportunity with a can-do attitude. Located in the nation’s most enterprising city, the university is making tremendous progress on its Eyes High journey to be recognized as one of Canada’s top five research universities, grounded in innovative learning and teaching and fully integrated with the community it both serves and leads. The University of Calgary inspires and supports discovery, creativity and innovation across all disciplines. For more information, visit ucalgary.ca.

The University of Calgary has launched an institution-wide Indigenous Strategy in line with the foundational goals of Eyes High, committing to creating a rich, vibrant, and culturally competent campus that welcomes and supports Indigenous Peoples, encourages Indigenous community partnerships, is inclusive of Indigenous perspectives in all that we do.

The University of Calgary recognizes that a diverse staff/faculty benefits and enriches the work, learning and research experiences of the entire campus and greater community. We are committed to removing barriers that have been historically encountered by some people in our society. We strive to recruit individuals who will further enhance our diversity and will support their professional success while they are here. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, however preference will be given to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada.