Career Opportunity

Position Title: Anonymous HIV Testing Outreach Worker

Classification: Community Health Worker (Band 6, Level 1)

Job Type: Permanent, 1 FTE

Department: Community Engagement

Location: 55 Eccles St.

Reporting to: Manager, Community Engagement

Compensation: $29.36/hr - $35.43/hr plus a comprehensive compensation package that includes time-off entitlements, health benefits, life insurance, and participation in the HOOPP pension plan.

Deadline to apply: May 08, 2026 by 5:00pm

Apply to:

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About us

We are Somerset West Community Health Centre (SWCHC), a non-profit, community-governed organization that serves over 18,000 clients annually. Established in 1978, SWCHC provides a wide range of health care services such as primary health care, health promotion, community development, mental health, and harm reduction. We are deeply connected to the communities we serve and committed to removing barriers to accessing services for people who experience vulnerabilities because of their age, income, ability, sexual orientation or gender identity, and language or culture.

SWCHC strives to ensure that our team reflects the communities we serve. We work within an anti-racist, anti-oppressive framework that acknowledges the existence and impacts of systemic racism and seeks to ensure that systems are fair and equitable for everyone.

What the Program Entails

Reporting to the Manager of Community Engagement, the Anonymous HIV Testing Outreach Worker will provide anonymous HIV testing within the city of Ottawa. The Worker will work in partnership with the African, Caribbean, and Black HIV Prevention Strategy Worker.

What You’ll Do

In compliance with the provincial mandate and operating under medical directives, the Worker will educate, counsel, perform rapid point-of-care (POC) and/or standard lab testing (by venipuncture, training provided) and deliver test results to clients. The Anonymous HIV testing outreach worker will liaise internally and with community partners serving communities disproportionately impacted by HIV to bring low-barrier services out to community members. This work will include health teaching and general education, supportive referrals to community organizations, advocacy, and targeted outreach to promote the health and wellbeing of priority populations in Ontario.

Please note: Priority populations impacted by HIV in Ontario include African, Caribbean, and Black communities, Indigenous communities, gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (including trans men), people who use drugs, and women impacted by structural risk factors increasing their risk of HIV exposure. Other at-risk populations include: people who are or have been incarcerated, sex workers, homeless people, and trans and gender-diverse communities.

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What We’re Looking For

Life and Work Experience

• 3 years of experience working in the field of HIV/AIDS, or equivalent combination of professional/lived/living experience Experience in supervising volunteers an asset

Your Education Path

• Undergraduate degree in health or social science OR equivalent combination of education and professional or lived/living experience

Required Language

• Fluency in English required.

• Working knowledge of French an asset.

What You Bring to the Table

• Strong organizational skills including documentation, data collection and analysis, and monthly reporting

• Ability to work very independently. Self-started and self-directed with strong judgement and decision-making skills.

• Thorough understanding of the social determinants of health

• Thorough understanding of anti-racism and anti-oppression

• Demonstrated ability to apply anti-racism and anti-oppression practices to the work

• Understanding of how systems of oppression affect each priority population in unique and distinct ways, commitment to continued learning

• Ability to build and maintain partnerships (primarily with local health and social services organizations)

• Understanding of the purpose and function of medical directives and the related concept of ‘competence’

• Commitment to a working with a harm reduction approach and passion for programming for people living with HIV and communities impacted by HIV

• Commitment to continued learning on the impacts of colonialism in this work and decolonization

• Ability to work flexible hours (some evenings, occasional weekends)

• Current standard first aid (level C) certification or willingness to certify (training provided)

• Willingness to perform venipuncture for HIV testing (training provided)

• Familiarity/comfort with using current and emerging modes of communication (online message boards, apps, etc.) for targeted outreach within priority populations

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Your Day-to-Day at a Glance

As our Anonymous HIV Testing Outreach Worker your responsibilities are:

• Provides anonymous HIV counselling, education and testing. Coordinates the anonymous HIV testing program including administrative responsibilities, quality assurance activities, and other requirements to maintain accreditation.
• Provide supportive counselling to clients requesting testing (assessing HIV risk, health teaching for HIV prevention and care)
• Assesses the clients’ support systems and decides to perform or defer HIV testing
• Perform rapid or standard HIV testing and deliver test results
• Provide post-test counselling to link people to HIV care, refer people to appropriate community resources (e.g. STBBI testing, harm reduction services), and combat HIV stigma
• Liaises and networks with external agencies
• Fosters and maintains active affiliations with agencies providing services to people living with or impacted by HIV
• Participates in local community-based research projects (i.e. Sex Now, service provider focus groups)
• Provides health education
• Promotes awareness of anonymous HIV testing to priority populations within the City of Ottawa
• Develops and coordinates dissemination of publication materials on HIV testing (focus: rapid and anonymous HIV testing)
• Facilitate training and capacity building around HIV, low-barrier HIV testing, and HIV prevention and care in the community
• Recruits, trains and supervises volunteers for the anonymous HIV testing program
• Trains and supervises placement students when required
• Training and certification of new staff for anonymous HIV testing

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Ready to Apply?

Take your career to the next level! Submit a cover letter and your resume by 5:00am on Mai 8, 2026, to:

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Somerset West Community Health Centre is an equal opportunity employer who values the diversity of individuals in our programs and services.

This posting is for a currently vacant position that we intend to fill through this recruitment process.

We welcome and encourage applications from members of Indigenous, Black and racialized communities, Two-Spirit, nonbinary, LGBTQ+ people; people with disabilities; and members of other equity seeking groups. Applicants are encouraged to share accessibility needs in the application process, and every attempt will be made to accommodate them.

We sincerely appreciate your interest in working with us. Due to high volume of applicants, we can neither confirm receipt of nor respond to inquiries regarding your application. Only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.