Summary Position:
Work Location: Nanaimo AVI Health Centre, 102-55 Victoria Road, Nanaimo
Hours of Work: 2 days/ week between Monday and Thursday, specific days and time to be determined
Start Date: ASAP
End Date: 1 year from the start date
To Apply: Please submit your resume and cover letter to jobs@avi.org by Sunday, March 14, 2021.
Job Summary:
The All Genders Wellness Health Promotion Educator will lead the development of social programming, education, and support services related to community building and social inclusion; gender-affirming care, health service delivery, and health system navigation support; gender identity and gender expression; sexuality and sexual decision-making; mental health and substance use; and HIV, HCV, and STBBI testing, treatment, and prevention strategies.
The aim of this position is to foster inclusive, equitable, culturally safer spaces for trans, two-spirit, gender non-binary, gender non-conforming, gender fluid, and gender queer people in Nanaimo. This position will report to AVI Nanaimo's Manager of Services and will work in collaboration with AVI Nanaimo's Health Promotion Education Department, Clinical Services, and Gay, Bi, Queer Men's Wellness Program (inclusive of trans, intersex, cis, cissy, cis for reasons of personal safety, and effeminate guys, as well as two-spirit and non-binary people, who identify as gay, bi, or queer and all men who have sex with men for any reason, including work, even if they do not identify as gay, bi, or queer).
Key Duties and Responsibilities:
- Collaborate with Nanaimo’s trans, two-spirit, and gender non-binary communities in an effort to create safe, gender positive, identity-affirming space for gender diverse communities within the city.
- Develop and facilitate community-building and community wellness events, peer-led supports, and social programming.
- Provide health system navigation support for people accessing hormones, gender-affirming medical care, and/or alternatives.
- Provide advocacy and support for community members who are experiencing barriers to accessing housing, finance, health, community, and social services.
- Develop and facilitate educational presentations and workshops for health and social service professionals to address health and social support needs specific to Nanaimo’s gender diverse community.
- Work with AVI Nanaimo’s clinic staff and Nanaimo’s healthcare, community, and social service professionals at large to provide education and guidance on creating culturally safer, accessible, appropriate, and equitable services.
- Collaborate to create Community Advisory Team to engage community members and identify emerging community needs.
- Connect with and work in collaboration with Transcare BC, the Vancouver Island Trans Community of Practice, and our local community partners.
- Provide support, training, and mentorship to peer collaborators.
- Participate in distribution of safer sex and drug use harm reduction supplies.
- Performs other related duties as assigned
Qualifications:
- Lived experience is essential to this position and work.
- In depth knowledge of the experience of gender diverse people in the City of Nanaimo, inclusive of Lantzville, Ladysmith, and Gabriola Island, as well as services that exist currently, and key local issues specific to improving services and addressing community and social needs
- Understanding of gender identity, gender expression, experiences of heteronormative cultural pressure to conform to “traditional” gender roles, coming out, transition, family and social network experiences, work inequity, housing issues, engaging with health care as a gender diverse person, transphobia, and the common experiences of heterosexism, stigma, discrimination, and gender violence that trans and gender diverse people face in everyday life situations.
- Holistic understanding of HIV, HCV, and STBBIs (including prevention, transmission, treatment), substance use, harm reduction, with knowledge of how health concerns and traditional health delivery models impact trans, two-spirit, and gender non-conforming people.
- Knowledge of effects of intersectionality and experience working with structurally vulnerable groups, including, but not limited to, indigenous people, people of colour, people who engage in sex work, people who use drugs, people living with HIV, people living in poverty, people living with disabilities, and people who are homeless and/or marginally housed.
- Demonstrate ability to lead program development.
- Experience developing, delivering, promoting, and evaluating educational workshops and social programming.
- Employment subject to criminal record check for working with vulnerable populations
Skills and Abilities:
- Strong public speaking and group facilitation skills.
- Excellent communication skills – both written and verbal.
- Strong project coordination skills, including time management, workload, and budget
- management.
- Good computer skills, including databases, word-processing, graphics and social media.
- Ability to work independently and collaborative as part of a team.
- Ability to work a flexible schedule, including evenings and weekends when needed.
AVI is an equal opportunity employer. This is a Bona fide position open to self-identified Trans, Two-spirit, Gender Non-binary, Gender Non-conforming, Gender Fluid, and Gender Queer People. People of colour, Indigenous people, people with disabilities, and people living with HIV are strongly encouraged to apply.