Chad: Country Health Director
Country: Chad
Closing date: 13 Sep 2013
Merlin Job Description 1Job DescriptionPosition: Country Health DirectorResponsible To: Country DirectorResponsible For: All Merlin Hadjer Lamis Health and Nutrition Staff (2-3 Locations)Works With: Country Management TeamLocation: N’Djamena, ChadContract Duration: 12 monthStarting Date: September 2013Salary: £38,880.00 - £39,630.00 per annum pro rata (dependent on relevant experience) inclusive of supplementary cost of living allowanceBenefits: Insurance cover, accommodation, travel, R&R (1 week every 12 weeks), annual leave entitlement of 24 days per annum rising to 30 days at the completion of 12 months of continuous employment with Merlin.Only short-listed applicants will be contacted. Due to the urgency of this position, applications will be short listed on a regular basis and we may offer this post before the closing date.Please note that this is an unaccompanied positionMerlinMerlin is an international health charity, saving lives in the world’s toughest places. Merlin responds with healthcare, when people are overwhelmed by natural disaster, conflict or disease and in need of immediate help. We focus on treating those who are beyond the reach of existing health services. After the immediate crisis, Merlin stays on to assist recovery. Using our expertise, we support health workers and strengthen existing health services. We build resilience by helping those at risk of future health disasters, to be better prepared.We think everyone should have access to lasting healthcare. We believe good health is fundamental to transforming people’s lives, that’s why Merlin is A Force for Health.As of 16 July, Merlin is joining Save the Children to create a world-class humanitarian health force for children and their families living in some of the toughest places in the world. By combining Merlin’s unique network of frontline health workers with Save the Children’s life-saving work in over 120 countries, more children affected by disaster or conflict will be reached.Both organisations are really excited by this opportunity to dramatically increase our reach and impact for children and their families.For those teams transferring as part of this plan, our expectation is that there will be a phased transition of Merlin’s overseas programme operations and head office teams to Save the Children, which we are aiming to complete within 18 months. During this time Merlin’s life-saving work for children and their families around the world will continue.Merlin Job Description 2Context and BackgroundChad is one of the poorest countries in the world, having suffered from decades of food insecurity, drought, flooding, disease outbreaks and insecurity. It is currently ranked as 183 out of 187 on the Health Development Index, with various indicators for health status consistently appearing at the bottom of many scales.The food crisis in the Sahel belt has been attributed to late and irregular rainfall in many areas during 2011 that was made worse by attacks on crops by birds and locusts, leading to a serious deficit in crop production, a lack of pasture and low water levels. Other factors that have contributed to a worsening situation are the increasing desertification, rapid population growth, poor access to basic services, acute poverty, poor governance and rising world food prices.Given the severe food-insecurity trends of 2012, the 1.8 million people who were food-insecure still need assistance to recover sustainably and protect their livelihoods. UNICEF and the nutrition cluster in Chad, estimate that due to the food crisis, 150,000 children aged from 6 to 59 months will be affected by severe acute malnutrition in 2013 in the Sahel belt of Chad. The reasons for this are complex. Households accumulated significant debts in 2012 during the lean season, meaning that poorer families will have to sell most of their production immediately after harvesting them. It is also expected that food prices will remain high.The key challenge that exacerbates the prevalence of malnutrition in the area is the weak public health systems in terms of lack of essential health staff, lack of facilities, poor supply chain and logistical support for essential medicines and equipment, and poor infrastructure, thereby giving a low coverage of the population in the district with nutrition services.Merlin started implementation of nutrition and health interventions for the populations affected by the food crisis in Massaguet health district in Hadjer Lamis Region, in April 2012. In 2013 Merlin has extended nutrition and health programs from Massaguet to Bokoro health districts, both in Hadjer Lamis region. It is expected that these interventions will be followed by a longer term development programme, centred on a close collaboration with the Ministry of Public Health, aiming to progressively provide them with sustainable support.Main purpose of the roleThe Country Health Director, as a member of the Country Management Team, plays a key role in developing and implementing the country strategy, especially regarding the strategic and technical leadership to ensure the effective development and implementation of quality health and nutrition programming in Chad. Merlin is seeking an experienced professional that can lead a dynamic team of health staff to establish health and nutrition programming in Chad, whilst ensuring quality and effectiveness. Initially the priorities will revolve around conducting a field assessment, and launching an emergency response, followed by transitioning the programme from emergency response to recovery / developmental support to the MoH, which will require an in-depth gaps and bottleneck analysis of the health system.Merlin Job Description 3Overall Objectives (scope)Reporting to the Country Director, and working closely with the Health team in Merlin’s London Head Office, the Country Health Director will:? Lead and assist in the comprehensive field assessment and analysis of health / humanitarian contexts in Chad? Plan and implement Merlin’s response to the present unmet health and nutrition needs, in line with approved proposals and budgets and in close collaboration with the other members of the Country Management Team, MOH and other relevant actors? Together with the Country Director, actively define and develop the medium-long-term strategy of Merlin in Chad in line with national and organisational priorities.? Provide leadership, planning, technical support and management to Merlin’s Chad programmes and ensure the programme adheres to and is in line with best practices and quality standards.? Responsible for developing an effective monitoring and evaluation framework for the programme based on the organisational Results Framework? Ensure an effective surveillance system is in place? Represent Merlin and advocate on health and nutrition issues to national authorities, international donors, international organisations and other NGOs at the national level.ResponsibilitiesLeadership? Coordinate and technically manage Merlin’s health and nutrition activities.? Develop, maintain and adapt a coherent programme (health) strategy? Ensure the effective and qualitative implementation of Merlin’s programming? Create a shared vision, among all staff, of Merlin's health programme aims.? Act as the Country Director, during their absence from the programme.Programme Development? Do scoping of potential new areas for engagement through desktop secondary data, stakeholder analysis and field assessments.? Assess scope for partnership opportunities with UNICEF, WFP, WHO, MoH (etc).? Provide in-depth gap and bottleneck analysis of the health system at all levels, with focus on the district and community levels that will inform the medium to long-term strategy.? Develop Merlin’s emergency preparedness capacity in relation to the humanitarian context and advise the Country Director accordingly.? Prepare and write timely and accurate donor proposals and reports. These documents should reflect progress against set objectives and/or newly defined needs supported by appropriate data presentation and contextual analysis? Prepare and write a timely and accurate monthly technical (health) sitrep submitted to the Country Management Team and corresponding Health Advisor in head office.Programme Support? Ensure implementation of programmes in line with the approved project proposal and budget, anticipating and communicating issues/problems in advance to Merlin HO and preparing written amendments as required? Provide technical assistance and oversight to Merlin’s (health) programmes in close collaboration with relevant country and head office team members.Merlin Job Description 4? Ensure quality of the programme through compliance and adherence to Merlin, Donor and National policies, procedures and guidelines, as well as internationally recognised standards (eg. the Sphere standards)? Support the project team in the fulfilment of their duties according to programme requirement in particular providing supervision, direction, coaching, mentoring and training based on training needs assessment of staff.? Develop emergency preparedness plan for the area / districts of operations in collaboration with the District Health Management Team and relevant CMT members? Ensure that appropriate systems and plans are in place for dealing with emergencies, and provide leadership for staff and volunteers in emergencies? Establish and ensure that surveillance and early warning systems are in place and functional? Develop a monitoring and evaluation framework in line with Merlin’s global results framework for the programme.? Ensure appropriate monitoring tools (data collection forms, tally sheets, supervisory checklist, HIS, etc) are in place and staff are trained in their use.? Promote and encourage community participation in and ownership of health and nutrition activities at the community level.? Ensure that medical stocks, supplies and other logistic supports are properly planned, procured, stored, distributed & managed, to avoid stock outs? Ensure good medical and nutrition commodities management and procurement systems are in placeTechnical Support? Ensure staffs have copies of and trained on relevant protocols and treatment guidelines (CMAM, IMCNI (Integrated Management of Childhood and Newborn Illnesses).? Ensure provision of EPI services in all supported facilities with coordinated targeted outreach to hard to reach communities? Implement a Health Management Information System with integrated disease surveillance and reporting system according to the MoH Guidelines and Merlin systems? Setup a coordinated referral system linking the primary health care facilities to the secondary level hospitals? Support identification and training of community health volunteers to conduct basic health care preventive interventions including health and nutrition education, support to EPI, sanitation and other outreach activities in the target areas? Establish Supplementary and Therapeutic Feeding Programmes operated through Health Facilities, targeting children under five and PLW using the CMAM approach / protocol.? Ensure proper communication, coordination and harmonization of activities with the different stakeholders involved in food/nutrition activities? Ensure IEC materials and key messages in nutrition for the targeted beneficiaries, through pamphlets, posters, Radio spots etc are in place? Take the lead in the preparation and implementation of nutrition surveys when requiredSupervision? Ensure program activities are implemented in accordance with the proposed activities including ensuring that procurement is carried according to project plansMerlin Job Description 5? Conduct baseline and periodic capacity assessment for all the community and health facilities’ staff with on the job mentorship and formal training for national staff? Design a supportive supervision plan to/for clinical staff and other community based health workers to monitor the implementation of the emergency project activities as well as operational functions and provide feedback to the field staff? Regular on site and remote supervision of staff and their activitiesMonitoring and Evaluation? Develop a Monitoring & Evaluation framework and corresponding tools and systems including Merlin’s HIS for the programme? Constant assessment and monitoring of the medical and nutritional needs of the community and guiding of activities to respond accordingly.? Monitor and continuously assess health risks and disease outbreaks in the project area? Prepare the technical reports including monthly and quarterly donor reports and data analysis and management? Monitor the progress of project activities and core Key Performance indicator targets outlined in the proposal? Ensure that the MOH and other partners receive regular activity reports and statistics? Conduct and train health staff on surveys, causal analysis, coverage monitoring and other assessments of nutritional status of target groups? Support HMIS Officers to collect HMIS data forms, and correct, and discuss trends/data with MHTs and Heads of Clinics to monitor health and nutrition surveillance and responsesCapacity building? Enhance programme and technical (health) management skills of national team through formal and non-formal training? Actively assist and/or Supervise the recruitment of key project staff? Assess the training needs of health staff and develop a training programme to meet these needsRepresentation? Co-ordination and representation with the MOH to ensure all project activities are carried out with their agreement and, as far as possible, their participation? Co-ordination and representation with UN, donors and other NGOS? Build professional networks with stakeholders in-country? Contribute towards the dissemination of Merlin’s health work through publications (general, health sector, academic literature, etc.) in consultation with Merlin HO? Manage external/international communications with the media in consultation with the Country Director and the Communications section in Merlin HO? Represent Merlin in coordination meetings at provincial and national levels? Encourage discussion with stakeholders as to how the prevention and treatment of malnutrition can be more effectively addressed at provincial and national levelsStaff Management / Human Resource? Manage staff effectively, including appropriate and systematic delegation? Co-ordinate and support, national and international staff teams, ensuring that the individuals work effectively together and achieve the programme objectives? Establish and/or maintain HR management tools for the medical teams e.g. staff appraisalsMerlin Job Description 6? Maintain good inter-team communications, engender good team dynamics, and take suitable action when problems occur? Undertake medical staff appraisals for staff under direct line-management and ensure for others to undertake appraisals of medical staff under their management? Take an active role in the development of a training plan for the Merlin project and in the capacity building of staff? Identify staffing requirement and recruit national staff as required to fulfil program goals and requirements? Participate in national staff work supervision and performance appraisal? Responsible for training of all medical staff to ensure the maximum use of their skills and their full and effective participation in medical activities whilst conforming to Merlin and MOH protocols? Responsible for international staff health within the project areas including first aid provisions, medical evacuation and general monitoring of staff welfareSecurity? Adhere to security guidelines and encourage team members to adhere to them? Pro-actively monitor the health, political, military and security situation in the project area and respond accordingly? Attend relevant meetings and ensure teams are informed of the current humanitarian environment? Actively participate in the updating of security guidelines on the Health aspectsFinance Management? Ensure that programmes are implemented within the agreed budget Staff Health? Responsible for staff health and well-being through implementation of Merlin Staff Health Policy including medical evacuation procedures? Ensure national staff health policy is up to date and followed.? Ensure that appropriate PEP stocks and procedures are in placeOther? Carry out any other responsibilities as requested by the Country Director? Produce written handover notes at the end of contractPerson SpecificationEssentialQualifications, experience and competences? Medical doctor, Certified Nurse or Nutritionist with a Masters in Public Health, and strong post qualification experience, preferably in health development or humanitarian aid field work.? Extensive experience of managing health and Nutrition projects in emergency and transitional / development contexts? Proven experience of using appropriate management tools to ensure effective running of the programmes, staff management and development? Strong experience in training, capacity building and community participation? Experience with HMIS and epidemiological data analysis? Strong experience in nutritional programming including assessment, survey, supplementary and therapeutic feedingMerlin Job Description 7? Strong experience of communicating and representation, at a senior level, with a range of people, organisations and cultures? Experience of managing health teams with the ability to motivate and encourage staff? Consistent experience of identifying and analysing opportunities that contribute to strategic aims and translate them into practical plans and action? Good ability and flexibility to understand the cultural and political environment and to work well with local health representatives? Strong communication skills, with excellent written and spoken English and French? Ability to work independently and as a collaborative team member in complex and often difficult operating environments? Experience of living or working in different / challenging cultures and countries? Confident and proficient in the use of MS Office, especially Word and Excel? Proven ability to reflect on and learn from personal and programme performance and act upon lessons learnt? Experience of establishing strong working relationships with colleagues from different departments and cultures? Experience of a flexible approach to managing and prioritising a high workload and multiple tasks in a fast paced environment with tight deadlines? Experience of proactively identifying and addressing issues? An understanding of and commitment to Merlin’s mission and valuesDesirableQualifications, experience and competences? Familiarity with Chad and / or West Africa working context? Knowledge of Merlin systems and procedures? Relevant experience of the programmatic aspects of malnutrition management, reproductive health and epidemic response? Relevant experience working in a transitional environment? Experience working with ECHO and USAID/OFDA.
How to apply:
To apply for this positionTo apply for this job, please go to www.merlin.org.uk/jobs and apply using our online recruitment system. In order to apply for a job with Merlin online you will need to complete a short registration process and create an account – the online recruitment system explains how to do this. Once your account has been created, you will be able to save the information that you have entered in your application and re-visit it at any time before you submit it.If you are unable to apply online for any technical reason, please contact applications@merlin.org.uk.Please note that we do not accept CVs. Unfortunately due to the number of applications we receive, only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.Data ProtectionPlease note that in accordance with the 1998 Data Protection Act, Merlin will hold and use personal information that you have given for the purpose of recruitment and employment. This information can be stored in manual and/or electronic form. This information may also be disclosed to third parties in accordance with the Data Protection Act. In cases where a jobMerlin Job Description 8offer is conditional on ensuring that potential employees’ names do not appear on counter terrorism lists generated by the United Nations, European Union or the United States due to donor funding requirements, Merlin will use the information that you have given for checking that your name does not appear on these lists.
