Purpose of consultancy

The WHO country office will support the MOH to manage the program by recruiting a part-time national coordinator to provide guidance on the implementation of the RDFM and ensuring that the necessary infrastructure and support are in place to support the implementation of the training program.

Background

Achieving universal health coverage (UHC) is one of the focus areas of WHO’s 13th General Program of Work (GPW-13) and is a specific target of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Advancing UHC requires sustained political commitment and technical know-how to realize a vision of improved health for all by all, under the framework of a resilient health system oriented towards primary health care (PHC).

In 2014, based on a long-term national vision, the Republic of Tunisia showed political commitment and decided to reform its health system. Social dialogue and the national health Policy 2030 are the core initiatives towards health system reform in Tunisia.

Strengthening PHC and making family and community health the pivot of the health system is one of the strategic choices of the national health Policy 2030. To support the Ministry of Health (MOH) in building future capacities in public health and community medicine, including strengthening postgraduate training in family medicine, the WHO country office in collaboration with the Arab Board of Health Specializations (ABHS) and the World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) started the country's implementation of the Regional Diploma in Family Medicine (RDFM) in Tunisia.

The Regional Diploma in Family Medicine was launched through collaboration between WHO, the Arab Board of Health Specializations and several other partners, including WONCA, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

In April 2023, the Tunisian MOH in cooperation with 4 medicine faculties and the WHO country office launched a program aiming to enable the registration of the first cohort of 60 generalist doctors in the RDFM. This two-year Diploma program aims at equipping general practitioners (GPs) from the public and the private sector with the needed knowledge, skills and attitudes that are required to provide comprehensive, continuous, and appropriate health care to individuals and families.

The training program is delivered over a period of 24 months, where the first 12 months are fully online and the second 12 months are in a blended format (mix of in person and online training). The program is divided into eight terms, spanning over 104 weeks, and composed of 16 blocks. The WHO country office in Tunisia is building on an initiative of the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (EMRO) to enable adequate family medicine education and training in the Tunisian context and increasing the level of education available in family medicine from the current certificate program (Certificat d'Etude Complémentaire, CEC) to a diploma program.

Duties

Under the overall supervision of WHO country office and in close collaboration with the MOH, the incumbent will:

• Coordinate and Work in close collaboration with the International Cooperation Unit (MOH), the professors from the medicine faculties, the WHO country office, ABHS, and WONCA to ensure that the program is implemented effectively.
• Follow up the “training of general practitioners” in the Tunisian context to increase the level of education available in family medicine from the current certificate program (Certificat d'Etude Complémentaire, CEC) to a diploma program. Act as focal point for the implementation of the RDFM and provide support to the trainers and trainees.
• Review and recommend follow-up actions for the readiness of the accredited training centers and field training of the enrolled physicians.
• During the assignment, measure the implementation of the project by working with ABHS and physicians through the registration, training, and certification process.
• In consultation with WHO and MOH, support the development of indicators for measuring the impact of training.

Deliverables

• Submit report on the readiness of the accredited training centers.
• Develop a detailed database of all enrolled trainees’ records and their state of progress and performance.
• Progress reports at the end of each term.
• Draft analysis and evaluation report based on the participants’ experiences and their feedback on the tools, activities and educational materials used during the training program.
• Share reports of the training and development survey results with students to Ensure knowledge, good practices, and technical inputs of the RDFM,
• Report on how the RPDFM has contributed to supporting the workforce in PHC towards resilient HS and UHC, with recommendations on how the training program could be improved for a potential second cohort.

Reporting Requirements:

o Reporting Language: English or French.

o Format: Microsoft Word

Specific requirements

Educational

Essential: University Degree in one of these fields: Medicine, Pharmacy, Public health, Health policy, health management

Desirable: Medial education or related field

Experience

Essential: At least 5 years relevant experience in primary health care work at the national level

Desirable: Experience of managing health education and training programs

Skills/Knowledge

• Ability to manage projects with multiple counterparts.

• Skilled in the use of a range of monitoring and evaluation tools to improve the strategies for achieving outcomes – experience in outcome monitoring and evaluation.

• Excellent analytical, evaluation, and writing skills are required.

• Essential: Advanced written and spoken fluency in French and basic written and spoken English / Advanced Arabic (speaking and writing)

Languages and level required

Essential: French - Expert level

Desirable: English - intermediate level

Medical clearance

The selected consultant will be expected to provide a medical certificate of fitness for work.

Location

Tunisia country office.

Travel

There is no need to travel for this assignment.

Remuneration and Expected duration of the contract (Maximum contract duration is 11 months per calendar year)

· Remuneration: the national pay rate of NOC.

· Expected duration of the contract: 60 working days starting from 15 Jan 2024 over a duration of 6 months.

WHO Competencies

Enhanced WHO Global Competency Model: Enhanced WHO global competency model

Interested candidates are strongly encouraged to apply on-line through Stellis. For assessment of your application, please ensure that:

a) Your profile on Stellis is properly completed and updated.

b) All required details regarding your qualifications, education and training are provided.

c) Your experience records are entered with elaboration on tasks performed at the time.

Additional information

• This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar consultancies at the same level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• If your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
• For information on WHO's operations please visit: http://www.who.int.
• WHO is committed to workforce diversity.
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Member States are particularly encouraged.
• WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and is committed to putting the WHO Values Charter into practice.
• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment, and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority, and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment, and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment, or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.
• Consultants shall perform the work as independent contractors in a personal capacity, and not as a representative of any entity or authority. The execution of the work under a consultant contract does not create an employer/employee relationship between WHO and the Consultant.
• WHO shall have no responsibility whatsoever for any taxes, duties, social security contributions, or other contributions payable by the Consultant. The Consultant shall be solely responsible for withholding and paying any taxes, duties, social security contributions, and any other contributions which are applicable to the Consultant in each location/jurisdiction in which the work hereunder is performed, and the Consultant shall not be entitled to any reimbursement thereof by WHO.