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Managing Director, Waterloo Institute for Health Informatics Research

Department: Waterloo Institute for Health Informatics Research Effective Date: April 2004
Grade: USG 14 Reports to:

General Accountability

The Waterloo Institute for Health Informatics Research (WIHIR), was founded in June 2003 and the position of Managing Director was established in July 2003. The Managing Director is responsible for providing campus-wide, mature, research, technical and operational leadership within the WIHIR. Because the WIHIR can impact both academic and administrative areas within the University as it develops its research and knowledge-transfer programs, the Managing Director must be able to work effectively with faculty, staff and students.

The Managing Director will be responsible for education initiatives in Health Informatics, and information and communication technology (ICT), including the Education Program for Health Informatics Professionals (EPHIP), the infraNet Project and the Smarter Health Seminar Series. Because the success of the WIHIR relies heavily on attracting and interacting with external partners in the health sector including health organizations, industry and government, the Managing Director will spend a significant portion of his/her time in this activity. The Managing Director is responsible for interactions with research, technical and managerial personnel in external partner organizations.

The World Wide Web and Internet technologies are cornerstones for the success of the WIHIR. Therefore it is essential for the Managing Director to keep his/her knowledge and skills in World-Wide Web and Internet technologies current. For this reason the Managing Director will assume responsibility for managing or actively participating in research projects related to informatics and health informatics with particular emphasis on the Web and Internet.

In the position of Managing Director, the incumbent is expected to work at an advanced level and be creative and innovative individually or with others: in continuing to develop an understanding of the various facets of the health sector; in identifying potential research areas in health informatics that will arise through contacts with external partners and agencies; in developing an understanding how information and communication technologies (ICT) in general and Web and Internet technologies are and may be used in the heath sector; leading research related to ICT in the health sector; in using this knowledge to be proactive in developing initiatives with groups both inside and outside the University; and in preparing various position papers and grant submissions.

Nature and Scope

The Managing Director of WIHIR is accountable to the Director, Waterloo Institute for Health Informatics Research.

The Waterloo Institute for Health Informatics Research has over 50 members and has been charged by Senate with providing leadership in research, knowledge transfer, and internal and external liaison in Health Informatics for the entire University of Waterloo. The WIHIR serves as a point of contact with organizations that serve the health sector. These include businesses, individual hospitals, the Ministry of Health and Long-term Care, Health Canada, the Ontario Hospital Association, the Canadian and Ontario Medical Associations, Canada Health Infoway, the Smart Systems for Health Agency, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), and health related industry and professional associations such as American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA), Canadian Healthcare Information Technology Trade Association (CHITTA), Canadian Organization for Advancement of Computers in Health (COACH), Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA). The Managing Director of the WIHIR interacts with senior management in all these organizations.

The Managing Director and the Executive Director of the WIHIR provides senior management of the University of Waterloo with contacts and analyses of the health sector. Particular focus is on activities related to submission of interdisciplinary research grants and contracts and fundraising. In this latter capacity, there is a close relationship with the Vice-President of University Relations.

Because the WIHIR provides assistance to many groups interested in Health Informatics,  there is significant interaction by the Managing Director with faculty, staff and students campus-wide. The Managing Director must also interact professionally and effectively with people external to the University of Waterloo who wish to connect with research, education and knowledge transfer activities related to health in general and Health Informatics in particular. The WIHIR deals with many external agencies on behalf of the University of Waterloo. The Managing Director is responsible for interactions with senior executives as well as technical personnel from these external agencies.

Since Health Informatics is a new discipline, and senior faculty in Health Informatics are distributed across the country, the Managing Director must initiate and maintain close working relationships with Health Informatics faculty and related institutes at other universities and research institutions.

In order to maintain a current perspective and identify and secure research opportunities for WIHIR members, the Managing Director is expected to be involved with municipal, provincial, national and international initiatives and committees related to information technology in health.

The Managing Director is the primary conduit for information on health and Health Informatics initiatives for the members of the WIHIR. The Managing Director identifies opportunities for research funding, brings these opportunities to the attention of the members and works with them in preparing research proposals.

The Managing Director is responsible for ensuring that information on Health Informatics is current and accessible to the members of WIHIR.

The Managing Director is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operational and financial aspects of WIHIR.

The Managing Director demonstrates leadership in the following ways:

Because of the confidential nature of health data, the Managing Director must be conversant in current confidentiality and privacy policies and legislation.

The Managing Director must have an up-to-date understanding of the health sector and the health system. Because of the confidential nature of health data, the Managing Director must understand how such data is handled within the health system, be conversant with current privacy policies and legislation and be aware of the impact of these initiatives on the health system and health research.

Although the Managing Director is responsible to the Director of WIHIR, the incumbent must be able operate and act independently with due regard for University policies, procedures and office standards. In particular, the Managing Director must work directly with faculty, anticipating their needs, providing alternatives and making recommendations. The Managing Director is also responsible for interacting with external organizations such as businesses, individual hospitals, the Ministry of Health and Long-term Care, Health Canada, the Ontario Hospital Association, the Canadian and Ontario Medical Associations, Canada Health Infoway, the Smart Systems for Health Agency, NSERC, SSHRC, CIHR and CIHI, and health related industry and professional associations such as CHITTA, COACH, HIMMS and AMIA.

The Managing Director is expected to maintain contact with colleagues in the health system, and to serve as appropriate on municipal, provincial, national and international initiatives and committees related to information technology in health.

The World Wide Web and Internet technologies are cornerstones for the success of the WIHIR. Therefore it is essential for the Managing Director to keep his/her knowledge and skills in World-Wide Web and Internet technologies current. For this reason the Managing Director will manage or actively participate in research projects that are under the Community Learning Space (CLS) “umbrella” and similar initiatives. The CLS family of informatics projects is currently funded in the Science Faculty, but works with groups both internal and external to the University.

The Managing Director is responsible for leading and developing teams to prepare position papers and research grants and proposals.

The Managing Director has excellent interpersonal skills, is aware of university-wide initiatives related to the infraNET Project, and is able to interact well with a range of people from inside and outside the university.

Statistical Data

The impact of the WIHIR is university-wide.

The WIHIR has its members and external partners are actively pursuing funding opportunities through partnerships with the health sector and granting agencies. Current annual funding levels and its current university partners totals about $900,000. It is anticipated that the funding for the WIHIR and its partners will exceed $2,000,000 annually over the next two years.

Direct contact with the industry, government and the health communities through the WIHIR is maintained through the offering of monthly colloquia and weekly seminars.

Direct contact is maintained with experts in information technology and Health Informatics through a “brain trust.” These individuals, who are both external to and at the University of Waterloo, provide expert knowledge and advice to the WIHIR external clients and partners.

The WIHIR in conjunction with the infraNET project maintains an extensive computerized contact database consisting of several thousand records and sophisticated Web sites, which are used to support their respective relationships and programs. In addition, the WIHIR uses Open Text’s comprehensive Livelink and MeetingZone systems to support collaboration among its members and partners.

The WIHIR has an advisory board consisting of leading experts in business and the health sector from across Canada and abroad. Managing and co-ordinating the meetings of the WIHIR Advisory Board are responsibilities of the Managing Director

Specific Accountabilities

The Managing Director provides the leadership necessary to sustain the operation and growth of WIHIR and the associated infraNet Project.

The Managing Director participates in the WIHIR research program and is also expected to supervise staff and co-op students in research and development activities.

The Managing Director is responsible for identifying grant opportunities for the research projects and participates in the writing and development of grant applications

The Managing Director is expected to develop think tank, seminar and workshop programs to provide insights into Health Informatics in conjunction with members of the university community and WIHIR’s external partners.

The Managing Director is a member of the WIHIR Management Committee.

The Managing Director is responsible for developing and operating the external partner program of the WIHIR.

The Managing Director is responsible for developing and operating the knowledge transfer programs of the WIHIR.

The Managing Director is responsible for the operation of professional education programs in Health Informatics, including the Education Program of Health Informatics Professionals.

The Managing Director is responsible for having an up-to-date understanding of the health sector and the health system.

The Managing Director is responsible for ensuring that he/she keeps current on trends in ICT with particular emphasis on the Web and Internet.

The Managing Director is responsible for the extensive website on health informatics and Open Text’s Livelink and MeetingZone systems.

The Managing Director is responsible for managing and coordinating the meetings of the WIHIR Advisory Board and Board of Directors.

Working Conditions