National Consultant: Liaison Support to the Emergency Medical Services (EMS)

Purpose of consultancy

In the context of the WHO Health Emergencies Incident Management System (IMS) at the Ukraine Country Office (CO) level, the Consultant will provide liaison support to the national EMS, the Regional Centers of Emergency and Disaster Medicine EMS directors and health partners who are supporting the EMS, within the Dnipro region and frontline areas (including but not limited to Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhia, Mykolaiv and Kherson regions).

Background

The Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 has resulted in disruption of health services in many parts of the country. Significant pressures are experienced within the EMS in the areas of pre-out of hospital care, medicalized patient transfers (including Medevac and interfacility critical care patient transfers), emergency trauma, surgical and burns care.

Among the wide range of emergency response activities, WHO is supporting the National Centre of Emergency and Disaster Medicine (known as the CDM) and the broader actors in EMS sectors (inter alia regional CDM , NGOs and emergency departments of health care facilities), with coordination of preparedness and response activities, the delivery of trainings and the strengthening and capacitating of surge capabilities.

Academic, continued professional development and non-accredited preparedness trainings such as Mass Casualty Management (MCM) and critical care patient transfers, remain critical activities that are being supported by WHO to help bridge the emergency and medium to longer term capacities, particularly in preparedness and response (as surge support) within the pre-out of hospital and hospital space.

Additionally, efforts are currently being made to establish standardization of protocols and the means to accredit and deliver internationally recognized continued professional development trainings for medical, nursing, and allied health care staff by health partners, to help ensure a capacity development approach for greater sustainability. Continued professional development trainings include courses such as Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Life Support (ALS), Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS), European Pediatric Advanced Life Support (EPALS), Basic Emergency Care (BEC) and the European Trauma Course (ETC) etc.

Liaison support is specifically required to strengthen the coordination and operational activities across the WHO Hubs, the EMS and the various health partners who are supporting patient transfers as a response, interfacility (inc. critical care patient transfers), medical evacuations and trauma stabilization emergency care in first line receiving hospitals in the high-risk Oblasts that are on or near the front line.

Most health partners supporting such activities are known to and are part of the Trauma Technical Working Group (TTWG) and / or Health Cluster. The Liaison Support Officer will also work closely with the central level WHO EMS Officer(s) to communicate and support the needs identified and requested by the EMS and health partners at the local level. This will help to ensure timely and appropriate response and preparedness activities are better supported to allow WHO to meet the needs identified and requested.

Deliverables

Under the general supervision of the Incident Management Team (IMT) EMS Officer, the consultant will be responsible for the following tasks:

Output 1: Ensure timely support is provided to the EMS and various health partners, as part of the localized operational and coordination response and preparedness activities in the high-risk Oblasts that are on or near the front line.

Activity 1.1. Draft a localized situation analysis each month of the changing trauma care needs within the high-risk Oblast’s (inc. trauma pathways).

Activity 1.2. Technically review and input into the preparedness guidance documents that are being developed by the infrastructure team (shelter preparedness in hospital facilities) and the EMS officers (Mass Casualty Management – hospital level).

Activity 1.3. Facilitate active communication between national authorities by managing correspondence and information reporting and dissemination pathways within the high-risk Oblasts, to help streamline communication and requests between health partners, the EMS teams and hospital facilities, particularly during times when additional health partner surge requests are required to be met (i.e., during a mass casualty incidents).

Activity 1.4. Expedite official and casual communication channels between the Regional EMS and Hospital facilities and WHO contracted health partners and other identified health partners with out of hospital and hospital-based activities as part of evacuation, medical evacuation and interfacility patient transfers (including critical care transfers), as required.

Activity 1.5. Proactively problem solve and track any requests and challenges identified / raised by the Regional EMS Directors / teams, the first receiving, and referring hospitals and health partners, escalating concerns to the EMS Officer when they cannot be addressed or mitigated against at a local level.

Activity 1.6. Support the interagency convoy with deliveries of healthcare commodities to identified hospital facilities in the high-risk Oblasts by acting as the technical health focal point during these high risk missions, supporting rapid health assessments and validating health needs.

Output 2: support establishment of new trainings programs and ensure that quality assured trainings are being supported and delivered to the EMS and hospital level facilities by WHO and other health partners.

Activity 2.1. Complete the BEC (Basic Emergency Care) training pathway, to become a national BEC Master Trainer as part of the Ukraine pool, by successful completion of BEC and BEC ToT and following provision of three BEC courses together with BEC Master trainer.

Activity 2.2. Complete the European Trauma Course Training (ETC) along with the EMS Officer in April/May and provide technical support in the adaption of the ETC training package / content to the context of Ukraine trauma care system – inclusive of proofreading of the translated English’s – Ukrainian training package.

Activity 2.3. Support the EMS Officer and the MoH in the establishment and roll out of new training programs, such as BEC, ETC , ATLS (Advanced Trauma Life Support) and Mass Casualty Management (MCM) in Ukraine, which are to be focused more on localized ownership through the creation of national faculty for greater sustainability and the overall strengthening of the system, particularly within hospital settings.

Activity 2.4.

Complete a monthly mapping exercise to determine who is doing what and where with regards trauma care trainings in the high-risk Oblasts by health partners – e.g. through bi-lateral engagements and follow up and through active participation / presentation in the monthly Trauma Technical Working Group.

Activity 2.5. Undertake x 5 onsite quality assurance checks of the national trainings being rolled out by the trained national faculty to assess/determine the impact and effectiveness of the proposed model of roll out. An agreed quality assurance and assessment tool is be developed and agreed with the MoH to ensure consistency of reporting.

Activity 2.6. Support the delivery of or technical review of any other training packages that are within the scope and competency of the skills sets of the consultant when requested by the EMS officer.

Qualifications

Educational Qualifications

Essential: - Bachelor´s degree in health-related sector (inter alia Medicine, Paramedicine, Nursing, Public Health). - Specialization in emergency medicine or equal field.

Desirable: - Advanced university degree in public health or related field.

Experience

Essential: - Minimum two (2) years of experience in humanitarian response. - Experience of working with international and national health partners. - EMS or a similar emergency coordination role.

Desirable: - Previous experience with WHO, other UN agencies, emergency health, national health information system.

Skills/Knowledge

Essential: - Good understanding of the national EMS system. - Ability to prioritize and coordinate multiple and competing requests at the same time. - Ability to absorb and rapidly synthesize information to make decisions based on needs. - Ability to work with a diverse team of experts from different organizations. - Good written and verbal communication skill. - A can-do attitude and can problem solve effectively.

Desirable: - Familiarity with the WHO EMT Initiative.

Languages

Essential:

- Excellent knowledge of English language. - Excellent knowledge of Ukrainian language.

Location

Dnipro, Ukraine; On-site from WHO office.

Travel

Travel will be required within country, depending on the security situation.

Remuneration

a. Remuneration: 140 USD/per day (monthly rate is 3080 USD, 22 w/days).

b. Expected duration of contract : 10 months

Additional Information

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