Senior Technical Adviser on Surveillance Systems at John Snow Inc - JSI

Starting Date: 05/15/2017

Job Description

• MEASURE Evaluation Phase IV is a cooperative agreement awarded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to a consortium of partners lead by the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill, and includes John Snow, Inc. (JSI), Palladium Group, Tulane University, ICF International and Management Science for Health.
• The overall objective of MEASURE Evaluation Phase IV is to enable countries to strengthen their systems to generate high quality health information that is used for decision making at local, national, and global levels. The project will work to achieve this by concentrating on four result areas:
  • Strengthened collection, analysis and use of routine health data;
  • Improved country-level capacity to manage health information systems (HIS), resources and staff;
  • Methods, tools and approaches improved and applied to address health information challenges and gaps; and
  • Increased capacity for rigorous evaluations.
• In Nigeria, MEASURE Evaluation Phase IV activities contribute to the results mentioned above by supporting the Nigeria Federal Ministry of Health to develop a strong, sustainable and fully-functioning HIS operating at national and sub-national levels. This includes building local capacity in M&E and strengthening structures and systems capable of producing quality data and promoting the use of data for evidence-based decision making.
• The Senior Technical Advisor on Surveillance Systems position is located within the office of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in Abuja, Nigeria.
• The Senior Technical Advisor will be under the supervision of the MEASURE Evaluation Nigeria Chief of Party.

Responsibilities

• In close collaboration with the NCDC and other key FMOH partners the incumbent will perform the following duties and functions:

Specific Responsibilities will include, but are not limited to the following:

• Provide technical support to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the Epidemiological unit of the Federal Ministry of Health and State Ministries of Health with the aim of strengthening the national capacity for control of tuberculosis and leprosy as well as strengthening surveillance system in general;
• Conduct a quick assessment of current reporting and surveillance / notification system for TB in Nigeria.
• Conduct a quick assessment of the Infectious disease reporting system (IDSR) in Nigeria
• Identify how the IDSR can improve completeness of TB notification in public and private health sector
• Build the capacity of the IDSR system to report on TB diagnosis and outcome in public and private sector – with an emphasis on health facilities not currently enrolled or reporting to the National TB control program
• Ensure standard reporting of TB cases in the IDSR system with data quality adequate for global notification
• Review of the current IDSR tools to include adequate reporting of TB cases
• Collaborate with WHO state surveillance officers to ensure reporting of TB cases by disease notification officers at LGA and state levels
• Attend monthly update meetings and submit a quarterly report to USAID/ TB team
• Facilitate collaboration between Department of Planning Research and Statistics (DPRS) National TB Control Program (NTP) and NCDC and WHO, to strengthen TB notification in the context of the IDSR.

Qualifications

• Medical degree with a post graduate qualification in public health or PhD in Epidemiology from a recognized university preferred
• Minimum of 7 years of relevant work experiences including experience at the international level and planning and implementing TB programs at national and sub national levels in developing countries.
• Minimum 3 years’ experience in surveillance and control of infectious diseases;
• Knowledge of the Nigeria epidemiological policies and activities relevant to the duties listed above;
• Experience in providing technical support to implementing USAID/USG programs or interventions will be an advantage
• Strong inter-personal skills and ability to work well in team.
• Diplomacy and tact to work effectively and harmoniously across partners, host country counterparts, USAID, consultants, other donors and international organizations
• Written and spoken fluency in English.

Renumeration

• Salary commensurate with experience.
• This is a local hire position with local benefits.