Public Health Specialist – World Health Organization (WHO)

Background

The World Health Organization (WHO) is the specialized agency of the United Nations with objectives to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. The WHO Botswana Country Office supports the Ministry of Health and Wellness (MoHW) in health actions for formulating, implementing and evaluating national health policies, strategies and plans, setting norms and standards, improving knowledge dissemination and management, monitoring the country health situation and building sustainable institutional capacity. WHO Botswana also collaborates with the Government in stewardship and advocacy for healthier populations through addressing the determinants of health, and for achieving universal health coverage to ensure accessible, affordable and quality health services for all.

Post Title: Public Health Specialist

Duty Station: Gaborone, Botswana

Duration of Contact: 6 months (1^st March to 30^th August 2022)

Type of Contract: Special Services Agreement (SSA)

Purpose of the Post

To provide technical guidance to the District Health Management Teams (DHMT), Ministry of Health and Wellness (MOHW), Botswana in strengthening surveillance and response for priority diseases, conditions and events in the context of Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) and for capacity building of health workers, in compliance with IHR (2005).

The objective is to enhance the ability of all levels of the health system to detect and respond to diseases and hazards that cause high morbidity and mortality and disability at district level by providing timely and reliable data for action. This will subsequently lead to the reduction of the health consequences of serious public health emergencies.

The Public Health Specialist will be situated within the Incident Management Support Team (IMST) that is responsible for directing Botswana WHO’s emergency response operations and providing technical expertise to the MOHW.

The candidate will be accountable to the WHO Representative, under the direct supervision and guidance of the WHO Health Emergency Lead/ the Incident Manager.

Key Tasks and Responsibilities

• Support the development of the core capacities in line with the National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS)
• Provide technical guidance to the National Level and District Management Teams (DHMTs) and partners, in the development and implementation of strategies and programmes related to the epidemiological needs for COVID-19 response at the district level, within the context of the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR)
• Support the design, implementation, supervision monitoring, of the IDSR implementation at National and Subnational Level leveraging on existing IDSR structures
• Carry out a training needs assessment and develop appropriate training plans for building the core surveillance, alert and response national capacities in accordance with the requirement for IHR 2005; train District Health Management Teams (DHMTs) and Health facility level staff, support DHMT in the supervision and on-the-Job training at health facility level
• Provide technical support for the establishment and functionality of Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) and Public Health Management Committee (PHEMC) for potential hazards like Infectious diseases. Zoonotic events. Food safety events and chemical events at the district level as per the national guidance and standards.
• Support the MOHW technical working groups in the implementation of IDSR
• Support the supervision of field investigations for outbreak verification, risk assessment and provide guidance for rapid public health response to outbreaks and other public health events of potential concern
• Support the coordination of the covid-19 response; and provide technical direction for the response and district COVID-19 task forces including interrogating of data from treatment centers and other registers, and prepare periodic situation reports to inform the response.
• Support risk assessments, operational planning in select high-risk populations in Botswana
• Review the health situation and analyze response gaps in the delivery of health services or emergency interventions, recommending appropriate actions and innovative approaches to improve the situation
• Any other duties as required to strengthen WHO’s capacity to support health emergency activities across partners and sectors

Key deliverables of this consultancy

• Core capacities previously identified within the NAPHS supported
• IDSR at national and district levels designed and implemented in strategic districts
• Comprehensive training needs carried out and appropriate training plans for building core surveillance, alert and response national capacities in accordance with the requirement for IHR 2005 developed
• Functional of Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) and Public Health Management Committee (PHEMC) established
• Supervision of field investigations for outbreak verification, risk assessment and provide technical support for rapid public health response to outbreaks and other public health events of potential concern supported
• Coordination of the covid-19 response and districts COVID-19 task forces including interrogating of data from treatment centers, and preparing periodic situation reports to inform the response supported
• Risk assessments, operational planning in select high-risk populations in Botswana undertaken
• Health situation and response gaps in the delivery of health services & emergency interventions reviewed and appropriate actions and innovative approaches to improve the situation recommended and implemented.

Profile Requirements

• Education:

University degree in medicine/health Sciences with Master’s degree in health science/public health

• Experience:

Essential: At least two years of experience in public health at the national and district levels particularly in the areas of epidemiology, communicable disease control and response. Experience in supporting implementation of Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response in resource limited setting is a plus.

Desirable: Experience in the areas of outbreak investigation and response for emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. Previous working experience in COVID-19 response, humanitarian, remote and insecure settings will be an added advantage

• Skills:

o Excellent computer and data analysis skills with ability to use MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, EPI INFO, other relevant software

o Good interpersonal, cross cultural, oral and written communication skills with fluency in oral and written English o                 Good negotiating and diplomatic skills and able to work in a multi-cultural setting and culturally sensitive communities

o      Energetic and able to work and live in insecure and hardship conditions when in the field

o Willing to learn and be mentored

• Budget and Remuneration

o The incumbent will be remunerated at WHO negotiated rate for a junior Officer o Duration of consultancy: six Months (1^st March to 30^th August 2022)

Applications to be hand-delivered in a sealed envelope to Ms Maureen Hirschfeld, World Health Organization, MVA Fund Building, Second floor. Fairgrounds, Gaborone. The closing date for applications is 15^th February 2022. Only qualified and selected candidates will be contacted thereafter. The expected start date for the assignment is 1^st March 2022