Title: Technical Assistant (consultant)
Hiring Manager: Program Manager for NCD Synergies
Location:Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Anticipated Assignment Length: One year (contract position)
Organizational Profile:
Partners In Health (PIH) is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Boston, MA, whose mission is to provide quality health care for the poor and marginalized in Haiti, Rwanda, Lesotho, Malawi, Peru, Mexico, Russia, Dominican Republic, and Navajo Nation. In addition, PIH has a growing network of affiliated organizations and initiatives in several other countries, including Nepal, Burundi, Mali, Liberia, and Togo. Through service delivery, training, advocacy and research, PIH works around the globe to bring the benefits of modern medical science to those most in need of it, to serve as an antidote to despair, and inspire others to do the same.
This is an exciting time for PIH. We are taking on immense challenges, and a newfound visibility has brought the opportunity to influence great change on the global stage. PIH seeks individuals committed to the mission and values (see PIH Values) of the organization to join the team.
Program Background:The NCD Division in the Ethiopia Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) is responsible for developing policies and monitoring progress in the response to NCDs and injuries in Ethiopia. The initial Strategic Framework for the prevention and control of chronic non-communicable diseases was finalized for the 2011–2014/15 time period by the Ethiopia FMOH. The National Strategic Action Plan (NSAP) was developed for the 2014-2016 time period, including full costing. The FMOH is now seeking a Technical Assistant to support operational planning for non-communicable disease service decentralization and integration at the primary health care level (including district hospitals), including a focus on rheumatic heart disease control.
NCD Synergies:A program of Partners In Health, NCD Synergies supports the development of “country owned” approaches to NCD prevention and treatment in low-resource settings. We leverage local and international experts to develop feasible, affordable, and health-system based solutions for all patients who suffer from NCDs, regardless of how poor or hard-to-reach they may be.
General Responsibilities:
The Technical Assistant position: The TA will report to the Director of Disease Prevention and Control Directorate, Ethiopia Federal Ministry of Health, and be hired as a consultant to the NGO Partners In Health for a fixed term of 12 months. He / she should be a seasoned project manager with a clinical background who can independently drive complicated analysis and has developed implementable policy in Africa. This person should be able to design and execute analysis, facilitate a complex process of stakeholder decision-making, and prepare and present policy for implementation. The Technical Assistant will support operational planning, clinical design, and costing for noncommunicable disease service decentralization and integration at the primary health care level (including health post, health center, and district hospitals), including a focus on rheumatic heart disease control. In addition to supporting implementation and planning activities, the TA will be expected to explain methods used to FMOH leaders and other partners in Ethiopia, and to share lessons via webinar with the NCD Synergies network.
Specific Responsibilities
- With strategic guidance from colleagues within FMOH, the Technical Assistant will independently drive technical analysis and collaboration, such as:
- Analysis/review of the burden of NCDs and injuries among the poor in Ethiopia.
- Development of a situation analysis describing current availability of decentralized services and health system readiness to address the NCD and injury burden in Ethiopia.
- Development of an operational plan to deliver an integrated NCD strategy at the primary health care level of the health system (including health post, health center, and district hospitals), with full costing.
- Identification of resource gaps (operational plan vs. current funding) and creation of appropriate strategies for fund mobilization.
- Development of a position paper on integrated NCD care delivery as a strategy for expanding access to rheumatic heart disease services at the primary health care level in Ethiopia, using findings from the review and situational analysis.
- Strategic engagement of expert NCD stakeholders in Ethiopia to strengthen the national planning and implementation process and increase its impact.
- The Technical Assistant will be expected to support colleagues in FMOH to present their collective findings to senior stakeholders via:
- PowerPoint presentations summarizing interim analysis
- Sections of the National Strategic Plan, explaining assumptions and methodology, conclusions, sensitivities of data analysis, and references cited
- Descriptions of staffing, clinical tools, supplies and supply chain, and operational economics of NCD services at all levels of the health system
- Published peer-reviewed articles
- Policy intervention briefs, webinars, or other informal ways to share findings
- As requested, the Technical Assistant will support the Division of Noncommunicable Diseases and FMOH officials, in close collaboration with FMOH’s partner agencies and NGOs, to:
- Collaborate with MOHSW officials on national strategic planning
- Engage expert NCD stakeholders in Ethiopia to strengthen the national planning and implementation process and increase its impact
- Build political buy-in to findings of analysis and translating those findings into useful policy recommendations at the national and county level
- Contribute to ongoing public health programmatic activities within FMOH over the course of the year. Such activities may include grant writing, development of an effective NCD curriculum for primary health workers, mentorship of staff in policy and planning, collaboration and exchange with other countries, and assistance with development of manuscripts for publication and other presentations of findings to global stakeholders.
Qualifications
- A degree in medicine with post-graduate study in public health; specialization in internal medicine is desirable.
- Proven success in supporting national strategic or operational planning for a ministry of health in Africa, including assisting in stakeholder management.
- Ability to accurately perform epidemiological forecasts, cost health programs and perform population impact analysis, using primary and secondary data
- Excellent English and Amharic communication skills (written and oral)
- Previous experience working with FMOH will be an asset.
- Mastery of Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel; ability to teach others Personal attributes:
- Ability to team effectively across varied academic and cultural backgrounds
- Superior client and public relations skills, to learn from, defer to, and influence seniors
- Self-motivated with unfailing attention to detail
- Impeccable integrity to preserve local ownership of data and findings
- Grace, creativity, warmth, and flexibility under pressure
HOW TO APPLY:
