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 Epidemic Preparedness and Response Technical Officer
DAI
Location: Brazzaville, Congo
Last Date: August 20, 2011
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At DAI, it's the people who make the difference. |
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EPIDEMIC PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE TECHNICAL
OFFICER, Brazzaville Congo |
| DAI works at the cutting edge of
international development, combining technical excellence, professional
project management, and exceptional customer service to solve our clients
most complex problems. Since 1970, DAI has worked in 150 developing and
transition countries, providing comprehensive development solutions in areas
including crisis mitigation and stability operations, democratic governance
and public sector management, agriculture and agribusiness, private sector
development and financial services, economics and trade, HIV/AIDS, avian
influenza control, water and natural resources management, and energy and
climate change. Clients include international development agencies,
international lending institutions, private corporations and philanthropies,
and host-country governments. |
| Job Description: |
WHO/AFROs Epidemic and Pandemic Alert and
Response Program (EPR) supports Member States of the African Region to
establish and implement functional integrated national early warning and
epidemic preparedness and response systems. These systems aim to improve
prediction, early detection, and rapid response to epidemic and pandemic
prone diseases and other public health emergencies in the African Region.
These preparedness and response systems also maintain a strong foundation in
national and regional public health capacity, as well as an effective
coordinated response, as envisaged under the International Health
Regulations (IHR 2005).
Recognizing the need for strengthening public health surveillance and
response systems WHO/AFRO, Member States, and technical partners adopted the
Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response Strategy (IDSR). IDSR aims to
improve the ability of all levels of the health system to detect, confirm,
and respond more timely to diseases and other public health events in order
to reduce high levels of death, illness and disability in African
communities by making explicit the required skills and activities sufficient
for each level in order to achieve a functional disease surveillance,
laboratory and response system.
The EPR program also works in close collaboration with the Global Outbreak
Alert and Response Network (GOARN) which is a technical collaboration of
existing technical institutions and networks who pool human and technical
resources for the rapid identification, confirmation and response to
outbreaks of international importance. GOARN provides an operational
framework to link this expertise and skill to keep the international
community constantly alert to the threat of outbreaks and ready to respond.
Regionalization of GOARN activities is helping to identify and assess
regional public health risks, engage appropriate regional technical
institutions and partners, implement training courses and workshops for
outbreak preparedness and response, and support rapid outbreak response
operations. This enhances WHO Regional Office capacity to provide technical
support to countries and supports networking with additional technical
partners and capacities.
Objective:
In the context of the constant threat of epidemic prone diseases and other
serious public health threats impacting Member States in the African region,
WHO/AFRO seeks an Epidemic Alert and Response Technical Officer to support
Member States and partners in the region in epidemic preparedness and
response. The technical officer will contribute towards strengthening the
capacity for rapid detection, confirmation, and response to epidemic prone
diseases as well as other public health emergencies.
Location: WHO/AFRO in Brazzaville, Congo
Dates: 01 August 2011 01 July 2012 - renewable for one additional year
upon funding availability
Scope of Work:
The AFRO Epidemic Alert and Response Technical Officer will work with the
EPR team under direct supervision of the EPR Program Manager and in
collaboration with existing regional staff and international and national
experts with a focus on two specific lines of work: (1) to lead a regional
process to develop national outbreak response plan guidance with other
partners such as USAID, US/CDC and WHO GOARN and its adaptation at the
country-level; and (2) support the development and training of a cadre of
available experts to participate as part of regional outbreak response
teams.
1. Outbreak Preparedness and Response Plan Guidance Development and
Promotion
Develop operational and technical guidance for the development of national
and regional outbreak preparedness and response plans in accordance with the
International Health Regulations (IHR) and within the IDSR Strategic
framework and IDSR Technical Guidelines.
Promote the adaptation and adoption of national outbreak response plans
across the region; she/he will provide guidance and advice to countries on
national outbreak response plan development, strengthen their capacities for
timely and effective response in the context of the International Health
Regulations (IHR).
Assess country level of preparedness for and response to epidemic and
other public health emergencies
Monitor the implementation of epidemic response plans through capacity
building, table top exercises and the regular evaluation of national
outbreak response activities
Establish outbreak response management protocols and develop a resource
library of outbreak response technical and operational guidance for regional
rapid response teams, network participants and Member States to access and
share in order to promote best practices and lessons learned in outbreak
response.
Work with the EPR team to identify outbreak information management
policies and protocols including clearance/information sharing requirements
in accordance with existing WHO/AFRO policies.
Support the development of a system for outbreak data collection and
identify the requirements for managing and generating information for public
health decision making.
2. Development of Regional Outbreak Response Teams and GOARN
In collaboration with GOARN and in support of existing regional and global
strategies and policies, support the development and implementation of
regional networking activities modeled on best practices / lessons learned
from other regional networking activities for adaptation in the African
Region.
Identify procedures and mechanisms for linking the rapid response teams
and the Regional network to the global network in order to obtain additional
resources as required
Develop communication strategies and advocacy materials for engaging
potential technical partners in Africa.
Develop and adapt regional procedures for coordination, activation and
logistics support to regional network partner for preparedness and response
activities, including risk assessment, training and rapid response.
In collaboration with GOARN, develop a comprehensive regional database of
technical institutions, experts, and their capability to support regional
alert and response operations and establish a system for maintaining the
information within the database.
Coordinate linkages with institutions or organizations with training
expertise to assist with the review, adaptation, and instruction of existing
and new materials and information in outbreak response.
Work with Regional, Inter-Country Support teams (Ouagadougou, Harare, and
Libreville) and high-priority Country Directors to develop networking
activities to support regional alert and response strategies and policies. .
Other related duties, as required.
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| Basic Qualifications: |
Education:
Basic degree in a medical field with an advanced degree in public health,
medicine or epidemiology preferred.
Language: Fluency in English and French is desired.
Skills and experience:
Required:
Demonstrated experience in developing international public health guidance
and or related materials.
Excellent organizational and analytical skills with ability to multitask,
identify and solve problems.
Excellent interpersonal skills with ability to promote cohesive action and
convince officials with tact and diplomacy.
A practical understanding of the constraints that must be overcome at
national and sub-national levels.
Ability to write in a clear and concise manner, and to present factual
information.
Demonstrated computer skills with emphasis on database management
Desirable:
Previous experience working in the African Region with, or within UN
organizations and the USAID system as well as first-hand knowledge of UN,
WHO, and or bilateral agency work in support of outbreak alert and response
preparedness and implementation and their practices and procedures.
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To apply, go to:
http://www.cytiva.com/dai/daipro/detail.asp?jobid=dai2079
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