Consultant - IPC Technical Officer (PNG Country Office)

Contract

This is a P-4 contract. This kind of contract is known as Professional and Director staff. It is normally internationally recruited only. It's a staff contract. It usually requires 7 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 146,280 USD and 188,597 USD.

Please keep in mind that the salary displayed here is an estimation by UN Talent based on the location and the type of contract. It may vary depending on the organization. The recruiter should be able to inform you about the exact salary range. In case the job description contains another salary information, please refer to this one.

PURPOSE OF THE POSITION

The consultant is being recruited to provide technical assistance for Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) activities to the ongoing COVID-19 response under the Incident Management System (IMT) in Papua New Guinea.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

The consultant is assigned to:

• Coordinate with the Incident Manager and clinical management pillar and work with other relevant pillars in the COVID-19 Incident Management team to ensure the planning, implementation and monitoring of Infection Prevention and Control (IPC);
• Support the development of infection prevention and control (IPC) core components for the response and recovery of COVID-19 pandemic;
• Provide technical guidance to national infection prevention and control IPC programme on the response of COVID-19 pandemic;
• Provide technical guidance to the national IPC programme on reducing healthcare associated infection, ensuring that IPC priorities and activities are managed effectively in compliance with WHO IPC guidelines;
• Provide guidance and technical advice for the prevention of the spread of severe emerging infectious diseases through development/revision, dissemination and evaluation of guidelines and implementation strategies;
• Ensure restoration of safe basic health services and implementation of the minimum IPC measures and work with logistic team all the necessary IPC materials are available and effectively and efficiently utilized at the health facility level;
• Assess IPC capacities and practices in emergency units, hospitals and health care facilities. Identify action plans and priorities for improvement and prepare a written report according to WHO templates in collaboration with counterparts and partners. Provide technical recommendations to partners and key players to achieve improvement actions and monitor implementation;
• Assess training needs, develop training materials and conduct and/or supervise IPC training for staff at district hospitals and health facilities according to the review of IPC measures;
• Review the IPC measures implemented in the affected areas and advise on prevention of healthcare associated infections in healthcare settings. Co-develop and outline the implementation of a national IPC strategy in regards to measures pertaining to enhancement of Standard Precautions;
• Support to reactivate the national IPC technical working group and IPC committee at the health facility level;
• Collaborate with partners to ensure the IPC activities are implemented properly, documentation of best practices and initiate sharing platforms for best practices through the national IPC networking;
• Perform any other related incident-specific duties, as required by the functional supervisor.

Deliverables:

• Progress interim (monthly) report;
• Submission of the list of functional IPC committee members across the country
• Submission of a report at the end of the consultancy.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Essential: Advanced university degree (Master’s level or above) in nursing, medicine, microbiology, epidemiology, or public health from an accredited/recognized institute, with specialty training (certificate or diploma) in the area of IPC. Desirable: Master’s level degree in public health or health related field..

Experience

Essential: At least seven years of related experience in the field of IPC, at the national and international levels, in managing programmes to improve quality and safety of health services. Some experience with outbreaks and health emergencies in developing countries. Experience working with multiple partners in implementing IPC measures in low resource settings. Desirable: Experience with evaluation of national IPC programmes in developing countries. Previous experience in UN organizations/agencies, health cluster partners, recognized humanitarian organizations, international institutions or nongovernmental organizations, particularly in developing countries; Experience working in COVID-19 or Ebola IPC will be added value

Language skills: Proficient in written and spoken English

Skills: Good computer skills in Microsoft office, EPI Info or SPSS