The Mental Health and Addictions Service (MHAS) at Unity Health Toronto provides comprehensive, recovery-oriented care to individuals experiencing substance use and concurrent mental health challenges. UHT Substance Use Services include Substance Use Disorder Care Pathway Programs (SUD-ICP), Rapid Access to Addiction Medicine (RAAM) Clinics, Inpatient Addictions Consult Services, and Pathways Concurrent Disorders Clinic. These services support individuals across acute care, outpatient, and community settings through integrated, evidence-informed approaches to addiction treatment and recovery. Role is operational during the hours of 8am to 4pm, 7 days a week (weekends once a month).

The Operations Leader - UHT Substance Use Services is responsible for cross-site operational leadership, coordination, and day-to-day management of addiction medicine and concurrent disorders programs. The role provides leadership to interdisciplinary staff including Addictions Case Workers, Peer Support Specialists, Registered Nurses, and Social Workers ensuring safe, effective, and client-centered service delivery. The Operations Leader supports staff supervision, onboarding, scheduling, complex care planning, quality improvement initiatives, care transition pathway optimization, and collaboration with internal and external stakeholders to advance integrated addiction services across UHT.

Duties and responsibilities:

• Provide day-to-day clinical supervision and support to Addictions Case Workers, and Peer Support Specialists, Registered Nurses, Social Workers including support with complex clinical issues, problem solving and development of safety and care plans.
• Coordinate day-to-day operations across SUD-ICP: RAAM, Inpatient Addictions Consult, and Outpatient Concurrent Disorders Clinic, and ED; this ranges from adequate staffing, clinic flow oversight and coordination between clinics and services
• Coordinate and leading onboarding, orientation, and training activities ensuring staff are familiar with program processes, policies and procedures, documentation expectations and service standards.
• Maintain and provide oversight for staffing schedules and coverage plans to support safe and consistent service delivery across programs.
• Provide 1:1 coaching and mentoring sessions for individual staff to support clinical competency, role clarity, professional development and consistent application of recovery oriented, trauma informed and harm reduction practices that are evidence based.
• Work collaboratively with Clinical Manager to monitor service delivery, staffing needs, workflow processes, and operational priorities; identify opportunities to improve efficiency, access, and quality of care.
• Identify, assess, and resolve operational issues and barriers that affect client care, service access, staff workflow, and program performance; collaborate with interdisciplinary teams and the Clinical Manager to develop practical solutions, escalate risks when required, and support timely implementation of process improvements.
• Monitor service indicators, utilization trends, access metrics, client flow, wait times, staffing impacts, and other program data to identify patterns, risks, and opportunities for improvement;
• Contribute to program evaluation by supporting data collection, reviewing outcomes, and providing input into quality improvement and performance reporting activities, as required by various funding source, including Toronto Overdose Network, and Ontario Health.
• Support implementation of program initiatives through SUD-ICP project operations committee meetings, including workflow changes, implementing consistent internal and external care pathways, and other deliverables required by Ontario Health.
• Support accreditation, quality improvement, and risk management activities.
• Support coordinated transitions between emergency, inpatient, outpatient, and community services to promote continuity and smooth transition of care, timely follow up, and appropriate connection to addiction and mental health supports.
• Provide clinical guidance and consultation to teams in resolving barriers to care and service access, discharge planning, follow up and service access.
• Facilitate Communities of Practice and interdisciplinary learning opportunities.
• In collaboration with the Clinical Manager, analyze service trends, client needs, referral patterns, and operational challenges to identify opportunities for improvement in care delivery and team functioning.
• Support implementation of evidence-informed clinical practices, including harm reduction, trauma-informed, and recovery-oriented approaches, to promote consistent and effective care across teams.
• Support the implementation and evaluation of Ontario Health SUD-ICP across unity Health Toronto's Substance Use Services, including the adaption of standardized care pathways and service delivery models.
• Collaborate with hospital departments, community agencies, and regional partners by maintain partnerships across the substance use care continuum to improve coordination, access and continuity of care.
• Participate in committees (ie. ED Care Plan Committees), working groups, and regional initiatives.
• Collaborates with the Manager on recruitment efforts for vacant positions, which may include resume screening, participating in interview panels and selecting candidates, to ensure the team possesses the required technical and other relevant skills to contribute to the success of the department;
• In conjunction with the manager, participates in the performance management of staff, which may include gathering relevant information around incidents/complaints/concerns, providing feedback directly to staff, taking part in investigations, providing input on corrective action(s), issuing non-disciplinary and disciplinary letters, and supporting the creation/implementation/follow up of any learning plans or performance improvement plans as required);
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications


• Bachelor's degree in social work, Occupational Therapy, Nursing, Psychology or related discipline required.
• Post-graduate certificate in addictions and concurrent disorders preferred
• Registration with the Professional College is required
• Minimum 2 years full-time clinical experience in substance use services in hospital/community, required
• Minimum 2 years operational leadership experience in hospital setting, preferred
• Demonstrated experience in leading quality improvement initiatives.
• Strong knowledge of addiction medicine, harm reduction, concurrent disorders, and recovery-oriented practice.
• Strong meeting facilitation, coaching and development skills
• Excellent communication and conflict resolution skills.
• Experience working with community and healthcare partners.
• Proficiency with EPIC, EMH Ware and Microsoft Office applications.
• Demonstrated understanding of opioid use disorder, alcohol use disorder, stimulant use disorder and withdrawal management.
• Knowledge of opioid agonist therapy (OAT), safer supply initiatives and harm reduction principles.
• Experience supporting Emergency Department addiction pathways and consultation-liaison services.
• Experience working within Ontario Health Integrated Care Pathways and Mental Health & Addictions systems.
• Strong knowledge of community addiction treatment, withdrawal management services, supportive housing and social determinants of health.
• Experience leading interdisciplinary teams in high-acuity healthcare environments.