Research Assistant I Research Program Description
The Department of Emergency Medicine Research Program at Unity Health Toronto conducts innovative research to improve emergency care, population health, and health system performance. Our work spans the continuum of emergency care, from pre-hospital and community-based interventions to emergency department care and post-discharge outcomes. Research areas include cardiac arrest and resuscitation, pre-hospital care innovation, pandemic preparedness and infectious disease surveillance, social medicine and health equity, injury prevention and road safety, toxicosurveillance, healthcare workforce wellness, and the application of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence to improve patient care and research processes.
Our research program provides project and recruitment support between 08:00 to 00:00 every day of the week.
Position Summary
The Department of Emergency Medicine is currently looking for a Research Assistant I . The primary role of the Research Assistant I includes patient screening and recruitment, as well as essential research, organizational, and administrative support to ongoing research projects. Under the direction of the Principal Investigators and senior research staff, the Research Assistant I assists with collecting and recording data through survey, in-depth interviewing and/or telephone calls, processing of data, following research procedures, collecting biospecimen samples (e.g., nasopharyngeal swabs), labeling and shipping samples, research ethics activities, and day-to-day study operations. Research Assistants also contribute to the funding and grant processes by providing information, helping quality check documentation, and liaising with internal and external partners.
This entry level position provides an excellent opportunity to develop practical clinical research skills within a large academic research program and offers opportunities for progression to Research Assistant II and Research Coordinator roles.
This position is fully in-person at the St. Michael’s Hospital and/or St. Joseph’s Hospital Emergency Department.
Important note: our ED Research Assistants are scheduled across morning, evening, and weekend shifts. Successful applicants will be expected to work scheduled shifts ranging from 8-to-10 hours between 08:00 to 00:00, any day of the week.
Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that people in underrepresented communities are less likely to apply to jobs when they don’t meet every single qualification. We are dedicated to building an inclusive workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly, we still welcome you to apply.
Duties & Responsibilities :
- Due to the variable nature of our research program, this list is to be used as a guide only.
Administrative Duties (40% of work time)
- General office duties, e.g., filing, mailings, courier services, photocopying, printing, scanning, distributing information, etc.
- Orders supplies, maintains inventory, and ensures supplies are accessible to research staff.
- Organizes office/lab space.
- Maintains calendars and manages complex scheduling requests.
- Develops correspondence and other relevant documentation, including letters, memos, reports, invoices, abstracts, forms, etc. to support the activities of the research team and Principal Investigator.
- Reviews slides for webinars, written study reports, scientific meetings, and conferences.
- Organizes video/teleconference meetings for research studies, including contacting attendees, and preparing meeting materials.
- Participates in database processing and management.
- Coordinates communication between team, and external partners.
- Prepares REB/CTO submissions relative to the initiation and conduct of individual studies.
- Helps maintain CVs of the PIs, and external partners.
- Updates monitoring logs (i.e., sample storage logs)
- Posts pre-approved content on social media (TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter).
Research Duties (60% of work time)
The Research Assistant I will need to be adaptable to assist with various research activities required for a diverse range of projects.
Non-Laboratory Research Tasks
- Collects, transcribes, organizes, quality controls, and enters study related data.
- Collects, compiles, updates, and provides basic statistical information, and other data to generate and prepare reports and other documentation to support study related data.
- Interacts with various departments such as pharmacy, laboratories, medical records, etc., and with internal and external stakeholders in order to provide administrative support.
- Performs literature searches/data mining on requested topics through databases and provide relevant articles to PI or research team.
- Understands, interprets, and processes data.
Recruitment and Coordination of Study Participants
- Screens participants and obtains required documentation including obtaining consent.
- Collects data via phone calls, surveys, interviews, and co-design workshops.
- Recruits study participants, in collaboration with study team or staff at participating community organizations.
- Schedules interviews and follow-ups.
- Follows strict protocols for participant interactions.
- Acts as the on-site point of contact for the studies at participating community/healthcare organizations.
- Administers quantitative surveys to study participants at participating community organizations using online survey tool (data collection).
- Facilitates compensation of study participants +under direction of study team/PI.
- Travels to participant sites as required.
Laboratory Tasks
- Prepares routine media, solutions, and reagents.
- Performs well-defined, routine and repetitive point-of-care testing (e.g., rapid antigen testing, COVID-19 testing).
Performs cross functional and other duties as assigned and/or requested.
All staff are expected to carry out their assigned duties and responsibilities in a manner which prioritizes patient and employee safety and confidentiality. Key accountabilities in this regard include:
- Strict compliance with patient/employee confidentiality practices and policies.
- Strict compliance with patient/employee safety practices and standards.
- Appropriate identification, reporting, and response to patient/employee confidentiality breaches in accordance with established policies and procedures.
- Appropriate identification, reporting, and response to patient/employee safety risks and incidents/events in accordance with established policies and procedures.
Qualifications:
- Undergraduate Degree or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
Preferred qualifications
- Previous experience working or volunteering in a clinical, healthcare, or applied research environment is preferred.
- Experience interacting with research participants or patients is an asset.
- Experience with participant recruitment, informed consent, surveys, or interviews is an asset.
- Experience with data collection, data entry, and quality control is an asset.
- Awareness of social determinants of health and sensitivity to working with diverse populations is preferred.
- Exposure to Research Ethics Board (REB) processes is an asset.
- Fluency (reading/writing) in another language is an asset.
Required certifications
- TCPS CORE (to be completed within the first 2 weeks of hire).
- Good clinical practice certificate (to be completed within the first 2 weeks of hire).
Skills
- Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.
- Strong computer skills, including Microsoft Office.
- Experience with REDCap, Qualtrics, JotForm, EndNote or similar software is an asset.
- Exposure to statistical or qualitative software (e.g., R, SPSS, Stata, SAS, NVivo) is an asset.
- Strong time management skills, including multi-tasking and flexibility to adapt to changing workload is essential.
- Proven problem solving skills.
- Strong written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a multidisciplinary research environment.
- Ability to learn new research software and procedures efficiently.
Unity Health Toronto is committed to creating an accessible and inclusive organization. We strive to provide a recruitment process that is barrier-free and in compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) and the Ontario Human Rights Code. We understand that you may require an accommodation at any stage of the recruitment process. When you are contacted, please inform the Talent Acquisition Specialist and we will work with you to meet your accommodation needs. We want to emphasize that all accommodation requests are handled with the utmost confidentiality, respecting your privacy and dignity.
