Data Management Officer

Contract

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1. Rationale:

1.1. Purpose of the Position: In the context of the WHO Health Emergencies Incident Management System (IMS), at the Zimbabwe WCO, the incumbent will provide technical support to the incident management teams, Ministry of Health and Child Care (MOHCC) and other partners in the collection, collation, management and analysis of data relevant to the emergency incident, aggregate the relevant information in the form of narrative text, maps and graphics for use in decision-making, health sector situation reports, donor reports, and other relevant documents, throughout the full cycle of the COVID-19 and other public health emergencies as they occur.

1.2. Background: Zimbabwe has been responding to the COVID-19 pandemic since the first case was reported in March 2020. This is being done through ten public health pillars of the response. WHO supports the country response through all the pillars and works closely with the Ministry of Health and Child Care and partners across civil society, bilateral partners, donors, private sector and the UN agencies. The Data Management Officer will provide key technical leadership in the areas of data management and analysis, strengthening situation reporting, and preparation of other technical reports when required within the context of the WCO incident management system and as an integral part of the national COVID-19 response mechanism.

2. Assigned/expected duties/work to be performed:

Reporting to the WHO Representative, and under the overall guidance of the Incident Manager, the incumbent will act as the focal point for expert advice on data management and analysis within the surveillance pillar of the response. S/he will provide support to the WHO Country Office (WCO), the Ministry of Health and Child Care and partners to improve the management, analysis and reporting of data and information relevant to COVID-19 and other specific diseases or hazard/emergency that may occur.

2.1. Outputs:

a. Manage the incident databases (cases and contacts) including content, structure, file location, backup system.

b. Collect, collate, manage and analyze data from all partners; aggregate the relevant health related information such as mortality and morbidity, location of hospitals, primary health care units, other health care facilities, etc. and transform it into narrative text, maps and graphics to enable strategic planning and decision-making.

c. Aggregate and maintain information from technical teams, field offices and partners including contact lists, event specific information (what, where, who, how many, how quickly, current status), health indicator data, health situation data, health response data, etc.

d. Develop, review and update tools to harmonize data collection and processes across WCO and field offices to facilitate consolidation of information. Respond to specific information requests from the technical teams and partners, ensure dissemination of information and knowledge sharing with all partners.

e. Provide technical expertise during interagency initiatives, related to information and data management, seeking to improve information sharing between institutions, to strengthen access to information from other organizations and clusters, and to contribute to intersectoral dashboards and reports.

f. Verify data quality (completeness, timeliness), identify gaps in health information management, recommend corrective actions and prepare relevant documents to include in project proposals, internal and external situation reports (SitReps), bulletins, health risk assessments, health needs overviews (HNO), and strategic response plans (SRP), etc.

g. Participate in any other activity that may be required in connection with the incident data management and perform any other incident-specific related duties, as required by the functional supervisor.

2.2. Deliverables:

a. A functioning data management and analysis system, including reporting pathways, regular reports, monitoring of indicators, maintenance of data bases etc;

b. Data management guidelines, SOPs and tools developed, reviewed and updated as required for the COVID-19 response and other public health emergencies;

c. Health care workers trained in data management at all levels including community;

3. Technical supervision

a. The WHO Representative

b. The Incident Manager

4. Recruitment Profile

4.1. Language:

a. Fluency in written and spoken English

b. Another UN language would be an added advantage

4.2. Education:

a. First university degree in information or data management, computer sciences, statistics, applied mathematics or public health.

b. Further training in databases development and/or management from an accredited/recognized institute

c. Desirable: post graduate degree in public health, qualitative surveillance, or statistics

4.3. Experience:

a. At least five years' progressive practical experience, at provincial and national levels, in development, advocacy, planning, implementation of data management activities in outbreak, disaster or humanitarian emergency

b. Relevant work experience in outbreaks and/health emergency management and related strategy development with WHO and/or UN agencies and health cluster partners

4.4. Skills and competencies

a. Excellent communication and presentation skills with ability to write in a clear and concise manner and give technical advice and guidance taking into consideration the views of multiple stakeholders and partners in resource-limited contexts;

b. Proven ability to promote consensus, communicate progress and results, and resolve issues in a proactive manner, while ensuring effective work practices and ethics;

c. Excellent knowledge of Microsoft Office applications.

d. Working knowledge of online data collection applications, statistical analysis packages (Stata, SPSS, etc).

e. Good knowledge of database and GIS programmes (e.g. ArcView).