Sunnybrook NICU seeks parent support coordinator

As covered in Healthzone's "Hospital want-ad targets parents" and Marketwire's "Calling All Moms and Dads: Sunnybrook is searching for the perfect parent to join its Neonatal Intensive Care Team", Sunnybrook's NICU at Women's College recently posted Canada's first job posting for a paid, temporary, part-time Neonatal Intensive Care Unit parent coordinator.

The job posting at Sunnybrook Health Science Centre reads:

We have a temporary part time opportunity for a Parent Coordinator to work in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at our Women's College site in downtown Toronto.  Reporting to the Patient Care Manager of the NICU, the Parent Coordinator is a liaison between staff and parents whose baby(s) are currently in the Sunnybrook Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The Parent Coordinator works to ensure that parents are active members of the health care team. In order to fulfill this role the Parent Coordinator must be the parent of a graduate from the NICU at Sunnybrook. The role includes (but is not limited to) the following:

• Acts as a liaison between NICU families and all members of the health care team
• Develops and coordinates support to families in the NICU and Neonatal Fellow Clinic
• Is the co-chair of the Sunnybrook NICU Family Advisory Council
• Provides individualized support to current NICU families as desired. This is an optional partnership and families may chose not to be involved with the Parent Coordinator
• Provides information to families about community resources that are available and updates this information as needed
• Participates in the design, implementation and evaluation of services, programs or systems that enhance services to infants and families
• Participates in improving organizational performance through recommending areas or approaches for improvement activities
• Provides education for families and staff based on input from families using strategies that facilitate learning and open communication
• Provides education to all new staff, students and trainees on principles of Patient & Family Centred Care
• Participates in NICU committees (Unit Coordinating Team, Neonatal Intensive Care Quality Improvement Project, Quality Assurance, Transition committee, others as the PCM determines to be relevant)

Skills and Qualifications:

• Applicant must be a parent who have had a baby in the Sunnybrook Neonatal Intensive Care Unit who was born at < 32 weeks gestation &/or any parent who had a baby in the Sunnybrook NICU for > 1 month and who's graduate child is now older than 1 year.
• Must have completed Secondary School education
• Demonstrated computer skills in MS Office and Outlook
• Excellent oral and written communication skills

Today, most hospitals in the United States have at least one paid family role. Kudos to Sunnybrook NICU!