Clinical Ethicist
Boston Children’s Hospital
Boston, MA
The Office of Ethics at Boston Children’s Hospital has an immediate opening for a clinical ethicist. Applications are being accepted online, at www.childrenshospital.jobs. To locate the position on the website, enter “32902BR” in the box labeled “AutoReqID.”
Boston Children’s Hospital is a 395-licensed-bed children’s hospital in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area of Boston, Massachusetts. At 300 Longwood Avenue, Children’s is adjacent to its teaching affiliate, Harvard Medical School.
Job description: Clinical Ethicist 32902BR
The Clinical Ethicist provides formal and informal ethics consultations. Organizes and participates in clinical ethics rounds, and collaborates with clinical teams, patients and families, to address ethical issues in pediatric health care and research. Develops ethics resources and education and serves as a facilitator for change directed toward strengthening the Hospital staff’s sense of moral responsibility and moral community.
Work requires at least 2 years clinical inpatient experience in a staff physician, nursing, social work, clinical ethicist or similar role with substantial prior ethics education and experience derived from completion of an ethics fellowship or other advanced ethics training and/or significant ethics consultation experience.
Preference for a clinical degree in a health professional field and graduate level preparation in this discipline, at least 5 years of clinical inpatient experience, clinical ethics fellowship completion, graduate degree in bioethics or related field, a strong understanding of acute care pediatric health care, and five or more years of experience in clinical bioethics, preferably in a pediatric hospital or health delivery system.
Significant focus on inpatient pediatric ethics consultations with active collaboration with nursing, social work, medical staff, and other internal and external individuals and groups.
- Work requires excellent interpersonal, organizational, oral and written communication skills in order to mediate moral disagreements or concerns and develop consensus or other ethically acceptable resolutions.
- Work requires sensitivity in speaking with parents, patients, staff and others of diverse cultures in stressful circumstances, in discussing ethical decisions regarding life support, dying and death, disclosure of bad news, participation in research, organ donation and transplantation, and other issues that can involve conflicting interests and values.
- Work requires demonstrated ability in multidisciplinary collaboration and the ability to initiate, prioritize, and manage multiple projects, working across multiple departmental lines of authority and accountability and under pressure to meet deadlines.
- Work requires the ability to motivate and manage employees, committee members, a volunteer staff, and consultants.
- Work requires remaining current in the fields of bioethics, relevant patient care law, philosophy, and religious ethics.
