Autism Advanced Practice Leader, Provincial Preschool Autism Service (Incentives Available)

Company : IWK Health 

Req ID: 219243 
Department/Program: Provincial Preschool Autism Services
Location: Halifax   
Type of Employment: Temporary, long assignment for 12 months x 1 Full-time or Part-time position
 Start Date: May 2026
Union Status: Non-union, Management/Non Union Bargaining Unit
Compensation: $53.4274 - $70.9891 /hour
Closing Date: April 19, 2026 (Applications are accepted until 23:59 Atlantic Time)

Successful external applicants may be eligible to receive a one-time Signing Bonus of up to $5,000. In turn, a Return of Service will be required for a 12-month period.

IWK Health is a respected academic health sciences centre providing tertiary and primary care for two million children, youth, adults and families each year across the Atlantic region. We have a team of approximately 4000 employees, physicians, volunteers and learners at sites across Nova Scotia. People build careers with IWK Health with our focus on training and mentorship opportunities. We recognize each other’s talent and celebrate our successes. We collaborate in modern facilities or virtually from home, align our work to our values, and enjoy access to enhanced benefits and wellness programs. We are proud to support our patients, families and communities and are grateful for the generous donor support we receive.

Promoting an anti-racist environment, and calling out discrimination as we work and provide care, is important to us. We are located in Mi’kma’ki, the unceded and ancestral territory of the Mi’kmaq people. Working in Mi’kma’ki and providing care to those across Atlantic Canada is a shared privilege with the original inhabitants who have lived here for many thousands of years prior to colonization. There are 13 First Nation communities across Nova Scotia, and more than 50 historic African Nova Scotian communities who also have a long, deep, and complex history dating back over 400 years. We have the highest percentage of people with disabilities in the country. Nova Scotia has the highest proportions of transgender and non-binary people than any other province or territory in the country. We are active in our work to eliminate discrimination, but have more work to do to build that trust, acknowledge our biases and reduce the barriers our diverse communities face. We want IWK Health to be a safe and supportive space of equity and belonging in the care we provide and the employment we offer. We welcome all interested persons who self-identify as Indigenous, Black/African Nova Scotians, Persons of Colour, Immigrants/Newcomers, Persons with Disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ to apply to support our goal for our workforce to be representative of the patients, families, and communities that we care for at all job levels.

Provincial Preschool Autism Service

The Provincial Preschool Autism Service (PPAS) is a partnership between IWK Health (IWK), Nova Scotia Health (NSH), Hearing and Speech Nova Scotia (HSNS) and Autism Nova Scotia (Autism NS). Based upon an extensive review and engagement, autism services in Nova Scotia have transitioned to a needs-based model responsive to the individual needs of children and their families. PPAS provides person and family-centred services to preschoolers across Nova Scotia who are suspected of or have a diagnosis of autism. The new and enhanced services include a greater number and range of interventions and supports available for children and families. Examples include: autism clinical intake and care coordination, family and health professional education, diagnostic assessments, QuickStart NS parent coaching toddler program, a 12-month intensive intervention for children with the greatest social communication and behaviour needs, autism interventions by interprofessional teams, and transition to school. The intent is to create an efficient, sustainable, and integrated continuum of health services for preschool age children with autism where services and supports are matched to the needs of children and their families.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Director, Provincial Preschool Autism Service (PPAS), the Autism Advanced Practice Leader (AAPL) is dedicated to advancing integration of evidence-based practice within PPAS service streams by fostering an integrated service model through embedding knowledge with administrative leaders, clinical leaders, staff and families provincially. The AAPL will facilitate continuous improvements in the quality of care provided to clients and families provincially across all PPAS service streams as part of an integrated model. The Advanced Practice Leader is responsible for leadership, strategic professional development direction, and engagement within PPAS, along with broad practice oversight to the program and clinical consultation to the PPAS clinical leaders, autism educators and staff. Along with providing practice leadership to the multiple streams of service within PPAS as above, the incumbent will provide a small percentage of direct clinical service to pre-schoolers and their families to maintain their clinical practice and knowledge. The AAPL will provide vision and leadership for ensuring a learning health system approach for PPAS, whereby research, quality, and evaluation inform service planning and decision making using a data-driven and evidence-based approach.
 
The Autism Advanced Practice Leader works in collaboration with senior PPAS co-leadership and with PPAS Managers across the province to provide high level clinical oversight.

Hours of Work

This position includes a Full-Time or Part-Time employment option (from 100% to 50% FTE, to be determined in collaboration with the hiring Manager)

Provincial travel required

Your Qualifications

• PhD as a clinician scientist in Psychology, Speech Language Pathology, Occupational Therapy 
• Registered or eligible for registration with the appropriate professional body in Nova Scotia required.
• Minimum 5 years clinical experience working in autism.
• Minimum 3 years clinical leadership.
• Demonstrates the LEADS competency of Leads Self.
• Demonstrates the LEADS competencies of Engages Others, Achieves Results, Develops Coalitions, and Systems Transformation across the integrated system of autism care for children and their families.
• Expert knowledge to critically analyse a continuum of evidence-based, evidence-informed, and/or emerging evidence and promising practices across all service streams.
• Demonstrated ability to utilize a critical analysis summary to set viable, innovative, flexible and responsive, collaborative interprofessional service direction.
• Demonstrated leadership of quality improvement methodologies to support efficient and effective practice.
• Experience in initiating, leading, and managing complex organizational change.
• Demonstrated ability to mobilize knowledge and evidence gathered to influence improvement activities across the system; identifies opportunities for service improvements through performance indicators.
• Excellent interpersonal communication skills as reflected by active listening, interest-based negotiation, conflict resolution skills and strong presentation and public speaking skills.
• Demonstrated ability to systematically oversee fidelity to clinical practice and clinical processes.
• Demonstrated knowledge of collaborative interprofessional competencies and the principles of practice development.
• Knowledge of relevant legislative and regulatory frameworks applicable to the practice of health professions in all service streams.
• Demonstrated knowledge of cultural competence, equity, diversity, inclusion, and reconciliation to support working with all families, learners, staff, and partners.

Thank you for your interest in IWK Health.

Please note that we only contact applicants selected for interview/testing. If we invite you to participate in an assessment process (such as an interview or testing) you have the right to request accommodation. Please discuss your needs when invited to the assessment process.

This is a Management/Non Union  bargaining  unit position. Preference is given to bargaining unit employees for unionized positions. Successful applicants changing unions, bargaining units or employment status, are advised to seek clarification regarding their seniority, benefits, and vacation entitlement and/or usage, prior to accepting the position.

An  offer of employment is conditional upon the completion and satisfactory results of all applicable background checks and confirmation of credentials.

If you are an employee of IWK Health, please apply through the internal careers page to ensure you are flagged as an internal applicant.