MNCH Specialist Lodwar – NO-C

UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN’S FUND (UNICEF)

KENYA COUNTRY OFFICE, NAIROBI

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT  - 

MNCH Specialist, Lodwar – NO-C

Temporary Appointment

Duration:  5 months

Date of Issue: 27 January, 2014                                Closing Date: 09 February, 2014

Applications are hereby invited from suitably qualified candidates to fill the above Temporary Appointment position in the Health Section, UNICEF Kenya Country Office

Purpose of the Post: 

Under the supervision of the Resident Programme Officer, Lodwar, the incumbent will be responsible for the day-to day operations of the MNH project and support the delivery of program strategies.

Justification

Turkana County continues to experience the effects of cyclic droughts and a weak health system. This results in some of the poorest coverage of key health services in Kenya, including low routine immunization coverage, skilled birth attendance, and treatment of common childhood infections. The poverty rate stands at 94%, the highest in the country.  Only 18% of the population can read and write. Less than one in five households has access to improved sanitation. The average distance from communities to any one of these health facilities is 50 km; only 9% of roads are tarmacked.  Serious gaps in human resources further complicate service availability: the population per nurse is just under 15,000, compared to the national average of 2,000.

The maternal mortality rate is presently estimated at 1594 per 100,000 live births (Population Studies and Research Institute, National Council for Population and development, UNFPA, policy brief number 38). This is more than three times the national average and more than seven times the rates in Kenya’s least-deprived counties.

UNICEF support to Turkana County is guided by evidence on the need to support maternal, newborn and child health priorities that address equity and impacts on the survival of children and women. In 2013, UNICEF supported the county to generate an MNCH investment case and baseline assessment of the health system; UNICEF then provided support to renovate the  Lodwar hospital’s maternity wing and begin to establish a BEmONC Center of Excellence based at this facility. UNICEF has also provided support to establish over forty Community Health Units and to begin to adapt the Community Health Services Model to suit the nomadic population.

Beginning in 2014, UNICEF will be partnering with UK’s Department of International Development to aggressively address maternal and newborn health in Turkana County (as well as Homa Bay County), working together with the county government and local development partners. DFID’s investment in health is primarily targeted towards strengthening health systems including the health workforce, improving maternal and new born health service delivery, establishing better support systems for mothers and newborns at the community level, and reducing financial barriers to healthcare.

The UNICEF-DFID partnership will cover the period from December 2013-December 2018 and seek to achieve 1) Health workers in Homa Bay and Turkana will have the knowledge and skills to provide quality delivery care and EmONC services; 2) Health systems strengthened to manage and deliver integrated maternal and newborn health services in Homa Bay and Turkana counties; and 3) Increased demand for maternal and newborn health services in Homa Bay and Turkana.

Scope of Work for the TA

UNICEF would like to engage a Public Health Physician in Turkana County to provide overall oversight and coordination to the UNICEF-DFID activities in the county, focusing on the activities falling under area 2, health systems strengthening. The Public Health Physician will oversee all county-level activities as part of a team of three to four field-based personnel, but he/she will place particular emphasis on the activities related to health facilities (health centers and hospitals) and facility-based personnel. A second individual, working closely with the Public Health Physician, will provide primary oversight for community-based activities, including community health services and demand generation activities.

More specific responsibilities are as follows.

The Public Health Physician will be contracted for a period of five months, to establish the foundation of the UNICEF MNH program in Turkana County.  He/She will work under the supervision of the Resident Programme Officer, Lodwar Field Office, and receive technical guidance from the MNH Specialist based in Nairobi, who has overall responsibility for the project. Specifically the TA will focus on the following activities: 

Component 1: Provide oversight in Scale up of training for health workers in emergency obstetric and neonatal care (EmONC) in five of Kenya’s eight provinces. The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine will be training several hundred health workers in Turkana County on EmONC and live-saving skills. UNICEF’s responsibility is to facilitate monitoring and reporting of the training activities, support coordination with the County Health Officials, and ensure the integration of new materials or protocols approved by the MOH into the LSTM curriculum. UNICEF shall also ensure that the Maternal and Perinatal Death Review and Surveillance system is incorporated into the training and follow-up activities. The TA is expected to establish an excellent relationship with the Turkana-based LSTM officials, attend as  many training sessions as he/she deems neceTAry for quality assurance, facilitate reporting, and ensure overall integration between the trainings and national protocols.

Component 2: Support Health systems strengthening and demand-side financing targeting the poorest women in Turkana County. This is the largest portion of the UNICEF-DFID work plan in Turkana County, and the TA should dedicate approximately 75% of his/her time to these activities. The primary goal for the six month period includes, in particular, overseeing a comprehensive needs assessment of maternity facilities in Turkana, which shall be integrated into ongoing evidence-based planning exercises. Once this assessment is complete, the TA will work with the county officials and members of UNICEF’s supply team to generate a fully budgeted list of essential supplies and equipment required to upgrade up to 16 maternity facilities to provide BEmONC services and at least 4 facilities to provide CEmONC services. The TA will also work with the county health team and partners to establish a costed HSS micro plan (for 1 year), and support the preparation of initial supply requisitions and supply placements.

The TA shall also complete preparations for the establishment of three nomadic clinics and and three maternal shelters in Turkana. This will involve extensive consultations with county government officials and partners who have prior experience with nomadic clincs, visiting potential sites, micro-planning and budgeting, and supporting the UNICEF Nairobi office to secure contractors to initiate the work.

Finally, the TA will work closely with the Community Health/ C4D TA to revitalize community and facility health committees to enhance accountability for the quality of health services. He/She should be in constant communication with the Community Health/ C4D TA to ensure increasingly smooth an regular communications between community health units and health facilities in Turkana,

RWPPCR/IRs areas covered

UNICEF will contribute to increasing number of women and children have equitable Access to and Use of Quality Essential Social and Protection Services and practices with focus on vulnerable groups and the most marginalised regions of Kenya by 2013

ü  IR 1:  Increased proportion of women and children receiving quality evidence-based essential integrated maternal and child care services by December 2013

ü  IR 2: Increasing number of households practicing improved health care practices with focus on reaching the un-reached by 2011 and sustained after that

ü  IR3: Health policies, strategies and systems supportive of MNCH scale-up and mitigation of emergencies.

Expected Deliverables and results

On behalf of UNICEF the Public health Physician TAs will be expected to deliver the following outputs in Turkana County

• Support orientation and inception of the DFID- MNCH Project in Turkana County.
• Planning of DFID and other MNCH Program implementation with MOH and other stakeholders
• Complete the facility needs assessment
• Identify approximately 16 facilities to upgrade for BEmONC services, 4 facilities to upgrade for CEmONC services, and generate a costed supply list and renovation micro-plan to accomplish this work, through close consultation with the CHMTs, facility in-charges, and local partners.
• Identify the locations for three maternity waiting homes and three nomadic clinics; through discussions with CHMT and partners, generate costed supply lists and microplans for this work.
• As supplies arrive, closely monitor placement and perform end-user spot-checks as required by UNICEF regulations
• Working closely with the Community Health/ C4D specialist in Lodwar, begin work to establish or revitalize community and facility  health committees
• Support UNICEF Nairobi to secure partnerships and Program Cooperation Agreements with local NGOs and contractors as needed
• Support M&E activities as required

Deliverables

The TA shall submit a brief monthly progress report detailing activities completed, underway, and challenges encountered requiring management attention. In addition to the monthly reports, he/she shall submit the following detailed reports:

1. Final health facility needs assessment, with supply list and approximate budget as annexes
2. Inception report for the 3 nomadic clinics and 3 maternity waiting homes, detailing the process of identifying locations for each, the package of materials required for each, budget, personnel arrangements, and any other pertinent details.
3. A detailed final report, which shall also serve as hand-over notes for the person taking over the responsibilities after the initial six-month consultancy.

*Please note that the TA shall be invited to apply for a longer-term position to continue this work, provided he/she has demonstrated excellent performance during the five-month consultancy.

Desired background and experience

The TA is required to be a medical Doctor (MBChB),with at least five years’ experience,  Master of Public Health or a health related field. Demonstrated competency in Maternal, New-born and Child Health Programming, including HIV/EMTCT. Experience in a clinical setting, either as a practicing health worker or facility administrator, is highly desirable, as is previous experience in Northern Kenya. Competency in Disaster risk reduction/emergency coordination and response are an added advantage.

In addition, the incumbent should:

• Have the ability to communicate effectively in English and Kiswahili to effectively convey information.

• Drive for results, attention to detail, and ability to identify and resolve challenges to respect tight deadlines
• Willingness to operate mostly independently, good initiative and ability to apply technical knowledge creatively to ensure conflicts and disputes are resolved between TAs, contractors and beneficiaries.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a multi-cultural environment and establish harmonious and effective working relationships both within and outside the organization.
• Computer skills, including internet navigation and the use of Microsoft Office applications (Word, PowerPoint, Excel). 

Conditions (Important)

The TA will be based in Lodwar, with frequent field visits to the six districts of the county.

Competencies

• Communication
• Drive for Results
• Formulating Strategies and Concepts
• Relating and Networking
• Persuading and Influencing
• Applying Technical Expertise
• Learning & Research
• Working with People
• Planning and Organizing

Languages:  Fluency in English.  Knowledge of Kiswahili would be an asset.

Conditions (Important)

The TA will be based in Lodwar, with frequent field visits to the six districts of the county.

The contract will be a Temporary Appointment. Salaries and benefits will follow UNICEF regulations for NOC level positions

Interested and suitable candidates should ensure that they forward their applications along with their curricula vitae,  to;

The Human Resources Manager

UNICEF Kenya Country Office

Email address: kenyahrvacancies@unicef.org

Please indicate Reference No. “KCO/HEALTH/2014/002” in the email subject.

Interested candidates should also complete the Personal History (P11) form, which can be downloaded from the UNICEF Kenya website (http://www.unicef.org/kenya).

“QUALIFIED FEMALE CANDIDATES ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY”

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