Consultant, Newcomer Cultural

Nova Scotia Health Authority; Halifax; Hybrid; CAD 63,000 - 77,000; Full time

Job summary

IWK Health in Halifax is seeking a Newcomer and Cultural Consultant to support culturally safe and equitable experiences for newcomers, immigrants and diverse communities across the health system.

You will provide cultural guidance to staff and healthcare teams, coordinate translated materials, and contribute to policy and program development aligned with departmental goals. Collaboration with community partners is essential to promote access and culturally responsive care.

Qualifications

• Community/college diploma (2–3 years) required.
• Minimum of two years of related experience.
• Analyze and evaluate information to identify cultural or access barriers and provide guidance.
• Assess alternatives and escalate issues to the Director as appropriate.
• Maintain communication with patients, families, staff, physicians, community organizations and health-system partners to explain cultural perspectives.
• Requires oral and written fluency in Arabic and English.
• Adapt communication to different audiences using cultural expertise and stakeholder input.

Responsibilities

• Provide cultural context and guidance to promote understanding among patients, families, clinicians, and communities.
• Build and maintain relationships with newcomer and diverse cultural communities to support engagement and partnerships.
• Identify barriers to equitable access and contribute to strategies to improve culturally safe care.
• Collaborate with internal teams and partners to support newcomer health initiatives.
• Collect and review information to contribute to policies, programs on cultural safety and access.
• Identify trends and conduct surveys to inform planning and improve services for newcomers and diverse communities.
• Develop and report on performance indicators for assigned programs.
• Coordinate translation services and materials in collaboration with team members.
• Coordinate staff education on relevant topics.
• Support department and organizational strategies and initiatives.

Skills

Arabic fluency

English fluency

Education

Diploma (2-3 years)

Job description

Req ID: 227013
Department/Program: Health Equity, Safety and Wellness , Health Equity, Safety and Wellness
Location:Halifax
Type of Employment: Permanent Hourly FT ( 100% FTE) x 1 position(s)
Start Date: October 2026
Union Status:Non-union, Management/Non Union Bargaining Unit
Compensation: $45.7463 - $56.0392 /hour
Closing Date: September 30, 2026 (Applications are accepted until 23:59 Atlantic Time)

This is not a designated position; however, preference will be given to qualified candidates who self-identify as Indigenous, Black/African Nova Scotians, Persons of Colour, Immigrants/Newcomers, Persons with Disabilities, and/or 2SLGBTQIA+. Please self-identify on your application.

IWK Health is a respected academic health sciences centre located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, 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.

The Opportunity

Operating within and accountable to the mandates, strategic priorities, operational plans, and governance structures of the Health Equity, Safety, and Wellness portfolio in which this position resides, the Newcomer and Cultural Consultant supports the development and coordination of programs, resources and practices that promote culturally safe and equitable experiences for newcomers, immigrants and diverse cultural communities across IWK Health. This position provides cultural guidance to staff and healthcare teams, supports education initiatives, coordinates translated materials, and contributes to departmental policy, program, and service development. Working collaboratively with internal teams and community partners, the position identifies barriers, strengthens relationships, and advances equitable access to services and culturally responsive care experiences for patients and families. All activities and deliverables are aligned with established departmental objectives, priorities, and reporting structures.

• Provides cultural context and guidance to promote and support understanding among patients, families, healthcare providers, and cultural communities, and assists healthcare teams in addressing cultural barriers where appropriate to promote culturally and linguistically safe and appropriate services for newcomers, immigrants and diverse cultural communities.
• Builds and maintains relationships with newcomer, immigrant, and diverse cultural communities to support engagement, strengthen partnerships, facilitate information sharing, and connect healthcare teams with relevant community resources.
• Identifies barriers to equitable access and contributes to the selection, development, implementation, and evaluation of strategies intended to improve culturally safe and equitable experiences.
• Collaborates with internal teams, health-system partners, government, and non-government organizations to support shared initiatives related to newcomer health, cultural safety and equitable access.
• Collects, reviews and incorporates information received from various sources to contributes to the development, review and implementation of policies, processes, programs, and cultural support strategies related to newcomers, cultural safety and equitable access.
• Identifies trends, and conducts surveys and jurisdictional reviews on best practices, recurring barriers and emerging issues affecting newcomers and cultural communities and brings relevant themes forward to appropriate internal or external planning bodies to promote and support culturally and linguistically safe and appropriate services for newcomers, immigrants and diverse cultural communities.
• Develops, tracks and reports on relevant performance indicators and supports measurement and evaluation activities related to assigned programs and initiatives.
• Supports administrative processes associated with cultural and translation services, including tracking translated materials, contracts and invoices, identifying and coordinating translation requirements for patient letters, reports and educational materials in collaboration with appropriate team members.
• Coordinates staff education and training by identifying relevant topics through staff feedback, emerging newcomer and immigration trends, and available evidence and practices.
• Supports the development and implementation of department, portfolio and organizational strategies, programs, initiatives and operational initiatives and provides guidance or assistance within or outside team as needed.

Your Qualifications

• Community / Career College Diploma (2-3 years) required
• Minimum of two (2) years of related experience
• Demonstrate skills to analyze and evaluate information from patients, families, staff, community partners, healthcare trends and relevant practices to identify cultural or access barriers and determine appropriate guidance, resources or recommendations.
• Assesses alternatives and contributes to strategies to address identified barriers, escalating unresolved or broader issues to the Director as appropriate.
• Maintain communication with patients, families, staff, physicians, community organizations and health-system partners to explain cultural perspectives, identify barriers and promote culturally safe approaches.
• Requires oral and written fluency in Arabic and English to communicate with patients, families and healthcare teams and support culturally and linguistically appropriate care.
• Adapts communication to different audiences and uses cultural expertise, evidence and stakeholder input to influence practices, build understanding and support shared objectives.

Thank you for your interest in IWK Health.

Please note that we only contact applicants selected for interview/testing. If we invite you to the 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.