Nurse Practitioner - Kwakwaka'wakw

First Nations Health Authority; Ladysmith; On-site; CAD 171,000 - 183,000; Part time

Job summary

A healthcare organization is seeking a Nurse Practitioner to provide culturally safe primary care services to First Nations communities on Northern Vancouver Island. You will work collaboratively in a team-based environment, addressing mental health and wellness and ensuring holistic patient care. Strong emphasis on traditional values and an active license with BCCNM required. This role offers a contract with competitive compensation aligned with provincial norms.

Qualifications

• Active license in good standing with BCCNM.
• Experience with First Nations communities is ideal.
• Training in Cultural Safety & Humility or willingness to learn.

Responsibilities

• Provide culturally safe primary care services.
• Support clients in a team-based environment.
• Manage patient care and co-ordination.

Skills

Cultural safety

Trauma-informed care

Team collaboration

Patient education

Education

Masters Degree – Nurse Practitioner (Family)

Job description

About Us

The First Nations Primary Care Initiative (FNPCI) is a partnership between the Ministry of Health, First Nations Health Authority and Indigenous communities throughout the Province with a purpose to increase primary care access and attachment to primary care clinicians, with a focus on collaborative, team-based, culturally-safe care. All FNPCI’s in British Columbia are First Nations-Led. The Kwakwaka’wakw FNPCI, located on North Vancouver Island is society operated (The North Vancouver Island Primary Care Initiative Health Society) and governed through a Board of Directors from each of the ten Kwakwaka’wakw Nations the FNPCI serves: Kwakiutl, Mamalilikulla First Nation, Dzawada’enuxw First Nation, Kwikwasut’inuxw Haxwa’mis First Nation, Gwawaenuk Tribe, Gwa’sala- ‘Nakwaxda’xw Nations, T\u2019latlasik\'wa_la\u2019la First Nation, Quatsino First Nation, and Da’naxda’xw First Nation. The First Nations Nations Health Authority is proud to support the Kwakwaka’wakw FNPCI and its Society with recruitment and contracting of Medical Staff. The first of its kind in Canada, FNHA works as a health-and-wellness partner with BC First Nations to support self-determination and decision-making to improve health outcomes. FNHA has been named one of BC\'s Top Employers for 2025. Learn more about why we were selected here https://reviews.canadastop100.com/top-employer-first-nations-health-authority

Position Summary

TITLE: NURSE PRACTITIONER

CONTRACT: Contract from 0.5 FTE up to a 1.0 FTE - typically 1680 hours a year per FTE

LOCATION: Kwakwaka\u2019wakw Communities on Northern Vancouver Island

Compensation is detailed within the contract and aligns with provincial norms, which are revised from time to time. The current service contract compensation is $171,533 - $182,968 over 3 years based on panel attachment and adjusted for full time equivalent (FTE). Applicants may be eligible for additional incentive and NPs are not required to contribute to clinic overhead.

Why Work At The Kwakwaka\u2019wakw Primary Care Centre

The Kwakwaka’wakw FNPCI is grounded in the following Kwakwaka’wakw values:

• Gilakas’la: Welcome and gratitude
• Ga’walap?a: To help one another
• Sanala: Holistic living
• Maya’xala: Respect
• Maya’xalap?a: Respect one another.

We are committed to weaving traditional ways of knowing with a focus on wholistic wellness built on a culturally-safe and two-eyed seeing approach to healthcare. We believe in work-life balance and creating an environment where personal and professional growth are supported and encouraged.

About The Role

The Nurse Practitioner position provides culturally safe, trauma-informed primary care services at locations across British Columbia. These services are intended to address known attachment gaps in BC while honouring First Nations voices in health service delivery.

Responsibilities

The Nurse Practitioner will be responsible for practicing with cultural humility, to provide primary care in a culturally safe, team-based environment that recognizes the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of the client (and family) to provide whole person care, in compliance with policies and procedures of acceptable BC health and wellness regulations and standards.

Responsibilities Include, But Are Not Limited To

• Culturally safe care integrating cultural humility and traditional values and ways of being;
• Serves as a team member with others such as a Family Physicians and allied health staff as well as traditional wellness advisors;
• Management and co-ordination of patient care;
• Provision of family planning and sexual health services;
• Primary mental health and substance use (MHSU) services including assessment, individualized care plans, early support and referral;
• Consultation and referral to other health care professionals where beneficial;
• Patient education, preventive care and assessment; and
• A wide range of collaboration with other wraparound team members such as huddles, conferences, consultations, team meetings, service co-ordination and referrals.

About You

• You are passionate about supporting First Nations on their health and wellness journeys;
• You have a Masters Degree – Nurse Practitioner (Family);
• You have an active practicing license in good standing with the British Columbia College of Nurses and Midwives(BCCNM);
• You have training in Cultural Safety & Humility or are willing to take this training;
• Ideally you have experience working with First Nations people and communities;
• You value working with a wraparound team of primary care, mental health and traditional wellness providers; and
• Current valid drivers license

Why Live On Northern Vancouver Island

North Vancouver Island is a vast and rugged wilderness ranging from the Broughton Island Archipelago to old growth rainforests in Cape Scott Provincial Park. We are a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts with world-class fishing, hiking, skiing and sea-kayaking. There are three larger communities: Port Hardy, Port McNeill and Port Alice that are adjacent to the culturally-vibrant First Nations communities of Gwa’sala-‘Nakwada’xw, Kwakiutl, Quatsino and ‘Namgis each of which has a Health Centre where our team provides care. We also provide care in the remote communities of Dzawada’enuxw First Nation, Kwikwasut’inuxw Haxwa’mis First Nation that are only accessible by boat or air. Finally, we have clinic-space partnerships with community-based organizations: North Island Building Blocks, Foundry, Sacred Wolf Friendship Centre and FNHA Midwifery Clinic.

How To Apply

If you are looking to join an amazing team passionate about providing compassionate and wholistic primary care to Indigenous people and communities, please email your CV to [e-mail] .

ANTICIPATED HIRE DATE: Fall-Winter 2025

The First Nations Health Authority is a first of its kind in Canada and is committed to respecting diversity within our workforce; preference will be given to individuals who identify as First Nations, Inuit, or Métis.

For information about Cultural Safety and Humility visit https://www.fnha.ca/what-we-do/cultural-safety-and-humility and for information about Land Acknowledgements visit https://www.fnha.ca/Documents/FNHA-Territory-Acknowledgements-Information-Booklet.pdf

For more information about us, please visit: www.fnha.ca/about/work-with-us

If you have any inquiries or issues please contact Medical Affairs at [e-mail]

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