Position Description
Area: Radon, KT and public health
Duration: 2 Years
Start Date: September 1st 2022 or later
Salary: $60,000/year plus Benefits
The Arnie Charbonneau Cancer Institute and Department of Oncology at the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary is accepting applications for a Postdoctoral Scholar Position in public health and knowledge translation on the unintended consequences of COVID-19 on radon exposure.
Job Description:
We have a position for postdoctoral training in public health, KT and radon gas exposure. The postdoctoral scholar will examine the unintended consequences of COVID-19-related public health measures on Canadians’ exposure to carcinogenic radon gas. This post-doctoral scholar position would be under the co-supervision and mentorship of Dr. Cheryl Peters, Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Oncology and Senior Scientist for Cancer Prevention at the BCCDC/BC Cancer, and Dr. Aaron Goodarzi, Associate Professor in Oncology and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Both Dr. Peters and Goodarzi are members of the Arnie Charbonneau Cancer Institute, and the scholar would work alongside the study teams leading CAREX Canada and Evict Radon (details below).
The hypothesis of our CIHR-funded study is that lung injuries from COVID-19 pneumonia will, as is the case for comparably less damaging typical pneumonia(s), increase lung cancer risk in people who do not smoke and make them more susceptible to the negative effects of radon exposure. As radon exposures are also rising, this produces the highly undesirable scenario of heightened lung cancer susceptibility with greater causative exposure, all as a wider health consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. This situation will disproportionately impact those who are experiencing disability – already a marginalized group – even more.
We are experts in environmental exposure science, leading the Evict Radon (Dr. Goodarzi) and Carcinogen Exposure (CAREX) Canada (Dr. Peters) projects that have coupled strong knowledge translation outcomes with large databases of lung cancer-causing radon gas exposure in Canada. The candidate will have the opportunity to be a fully integrated member of both of these teams, interacting with staff and students across the projects and contributing to other relevant cancer prevention initiatives as they relate to the candidate’s expertise and interests.
The responsibilities of the Postdoctoral scholar include (but may not be limited to):
- Leading of survey design and implementation activities, data analysis, and preparation of reports and publications;
- Assisting in the design, writing and submission of research ethics applications to local research ethics boards.
- Applying for independent post-doctoral fellowship opportunities in collaboration with Dr. Peters and Goodarzi, as opportunities arise.
- Knowledge translation activities including stakeholder engagement, design and implementation of knowledge translation efforts (including organizing webinars and creating and sharing tailored data and knowledge products to stakeholders (e.g. by working with knowledge brokers to create policy recommendations, creating policy briefs), and leading scientific publications;
- Supervision of trainee program staff, and potential contribution to undergraduate and graduate student mentorship;
- Pursuit of scholarly activities as applicable to the Postdoctoral Scholar’s areas of expertise (e.g., contributing to future grant development, collaborating on manuscripts and relevant projects, undergoing pertinent professional development activities).
- Speaking about this work in academic and public forums, as opportunities arise.
- Engaging with stakeholder groups including but not limited to advisory groups of Canadians experiencing disability (and their caregivers).
Qualifications:
The successful candidate will have recently graduated (in the last 2-3 years) with a PhD in Population and Public Health, Epidemiology, Knowledge Translation, or equivalent and have excellent academic credentials. Evidence of peer-reviewed publications and scholarly presentations is required. The individual should have excellent statistical and analytical skills and experience with survey design and analysis (e.g. using Qualtrics, SAS, STATA, or R). The candidate should be capable of working independently and have excellent oral and written English communication skills. Past experiences in engaged KT research work is desirable (e.g. implementation projects, evaluations, stakeholder engagement, etc.). Experience and familiarity with research ethics applications (and obtaining approvals) is beneficial.
Please review the Postdoc Eligibility Guidelines for more information prior to applying for this position.
Application details:
Individuals interested in this dynamic field of research should submit their curriculum vitae and a statement of research interests and goals.
Please send application materials to:
Dr. Cheryl Peters (cheryl.peters@ucalgary.ca)
Application deadline: Applications will be reviewed as they are received until the position is filled.
Review of the applicants will begin immediately. We thank all applicants’ interests, but only short-listed candidates will be contacted for more information and invited to interview. Review of applications will continue until the positions are filled.
Additional Information
To learn more about postdoctoral scholar opportunities at the University of Calgary and all we have to offer, view our Postdoc Careers website. For more information about the Cumming School of Medicine visit Careers in the Cumming School of Medicine.
The University strongly recommends all faculty and staff are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
About the University of Calgary
The University of Calgary is Canada’s leading next-generation university – a living, growing and youthful institution that embraces change and opportunity with a can-do attitude. Located in the nation’s most enterprising city, the university is making tremendous progress on its Eyes High journey to be recognized as one of Canada’s top five research universities, grounded in innovative learning and teaching and fully integrated with the community it both serves and leads. The University of Calgary inspires and supports discovery, creativity and innovation across all disciplines. For more information, visit ucalgary.ca.
To succeed as one of Canada’s top universities, where new ideas are created, tested and applied through first-class teaching and research, the University of Calgary needs more of the best minds in our classrooms and labs. We’re increasing our scholarly capacity by investing in people who want to change the world, bringing the best and brightest to Calgary to form a global intellectual hub and achieve advances that matter to everyone. For more information visit research.ucalgary.ca/postdocs.
About Calgary, Alberta
Calgary is one of the world’s cleanest cities and has been named one of the world’s most livable cities for years. Calgary is a city of leaders – in business, community, philanthropy and volunteerism. Calgarians benefit from the strongest economy in the nation and enjoy more days of sunshine per year than any other major Canadian city. Calgary is less than an hour’s drive from the Rocky Mountains and boasts the most extensive urban pathway and bikeway network in North America.
The University of Calgary has launched an institution-wide Indigenous Strategy in line with the foundational goals of Eyes High, committing to creating a rich, vibrant, and culturally competent campus that welcomes and supports Indigenous Peoples, encourages Indigenous community partnerships, is inclusive of Indigenous perspectives in all that we do.
The University of Calgary recognizes that a diverse staff/faculty benefits and enriches the work, learning and research experiences of the entire campus and greater community. We are committed to removing barriers that have been historically encountered by some people in our society. We strive to recruit individuals who will further enhance our diversity and will support their professional success while they are here.