Research Assistant - Community Paediatrics

• Part time (0.4FTE) fixed term until June 2028 with a potential for extension contingent on funding
• Opportunity to assist with Integrated Kids Connect (IKC) project within the Community Paediatrics department
• Base Salary $83,038 - $87,739 pro rata + 17% superannuation

About the opportunity

Central Clinical School is the largest of the University's clinical schools, our staff cover a wide range of disciplines and are active in both research and teaching. The CCS research activities are also supplemented by our affiliation with the largest number of external research units and institutes in the Faculty of Medicine & Health, covering a diverse range of disciplines and research areas.

The University is seeking to employ a Research Assistant - Community Paediatrics to support a research project called Integrated Care Connect (IKC). This team is led by Professor Susan Woolfenden and a multi-disciplinary team of clinician researchers passionate about novel research to support children and their families.

Integrated Kids Connect (IKC) is an innovative, co-designed program that transforms early childhood care by embedding proactive, strengths-based developmental screening and support into everyday community and service settings. Using the Watch Me Grow-Electronic (WMG-E) platform as a "digital front door," IKC enables families to complete developmental checks easily and connects them to tailored, integrated supports based on their needs.

The program partners with families, communities, and service providers including Sydney Local Health District and South Western Sydney Local Health District to deliver culturally safe, equitable care. By improving early identification, reducing service gaps, and strengthening coordinated care pathways, IKC aims to ensure no child is left behind and to improve long-term health, developmental, and educational outcomes.

In this role, you will play a key role in providing support for the operations of the project. We are a respectful and motivated multidisciplinary clinical research team that works with priority populations to undertake innovative research that advances knowledge, clinical practice, and models of care with a focus on

• Clinical research to enhance child health, wellbeing, neurodevelopmental outcomes across lifecourse
• Developing equitable health systems in the community
• Understanding health inequities and outcomes using epidemiological data

This role is ideal for those who are interested in understanding and promoting the environmental, social, and intergenerational factors that contribute to child youth and family health and wellbeing, and also enjoys working in a collaborative and dynamic environment.

Your key responsibilities will be to:

• recruit and support families participating in the program, acting as a key contact and providing culturally safe, strengths-based care
• coordinate care using the Watch Me Grow-Electronic (WMG-E) platform, including intake, assessment, referrals, and ongoing follow-up to ensure timely, integrated support
• develop and monitor individualised care plans, working collaboratively with service providers and partners such as Sydney Local Health District and South Western Sydney Local Health District
• maintain accurate records, support early identification and intervention, and ensure continuity of care by addressing barriers to access
• engage with diverse communities to deliver inclusive and accessible services
• participate in case conferences, team activities, and continuous quality improvement processes
• contribute to research activities by supporting data collection, analysis, reporting, ethics processes, and collaboration with research partners
• assist the Community Paediatric Research Team with program delivery, meetings, and grant and publication submissions
• maintain ethics applications.

About you

• experience in coordinating care for children and families
• tertiary qualification in relevant field such as health sciences, psychology, public health (Masters/Honours degree) with relevant work experience is desirable
• experience in developing and working on research projects, including expertise in using research protocols, data management, experimental design, and ethics submissions
• demonstrated experience with common electronic data capture systems (such as RedCAP etc.) Endnote files, electronic medical record (EMR) and databases
• knowledge of qualitative and/or quantitative research methods
• knowledge of the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research, Good Clinical Practice and Guidelines governing clinical research
• demonstrated high level of written communication skills and ability to draft research reports summarising statistical analyses and results
• excellent interpersonal skills (e.g., for interviewing participants from clinical and non-clinical populations) and the ability to work as part of a multidisciplinary research team.
• excellent organisational skills and ability to prioritise own workload and work independently as well as an effective member of a team
• demonstrated strong interpersonal skills and attention to details, as well as the ability/will to improve their professional knowledge (e.g. learning new protocols and techniques)
• sound understanding of paediatric models of care, equity, and social justice is desirable.