Public Health Response Officer COVID - 19 at Palladium Group

Job ref.: req9998

Project Overview and Role

• The LAFIYA programme is a 7-year DFID Funded programme from February 2020 to February 2027. The programme is being implemented by Palladium and its Consortium Partners – Society for Family Health, Options Consultancy Services Ltd, CHECOD, PharmAccess, Solina and Chatham House. Lafiya will be delivered at federal level, as well as with a focus on targeted states (Borno, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano and Yobe) with activities tailored for each specific state instead of a “one size fits all” approach.
• The objective of the programme is to improve health outcomes for the poorest and most vulnerable in Nigeria through i) encouraging Government of Nigeria to increase resources invested in health; ii) improving effectiveness and efficiency of public and private basic health for services and iii) reducing total fertility rate in Nigeria.
• Lafiya programme is implementing FCDO support to the Government of Nigeria’s COVID-19 response to facilitate a coordinated and efficient response. This support is being provided at National level and Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, Kano, Lagos, Yobe, Borno and Zamfara States.

The three objectives of FCDO-LAFIYA’s COVID-19 support are:

• Objective 1: Support to the COVID-19 response in Lafiya targeted states and at national level including flexing to other states where the need is greatest.
• Objective 2: Support to continuity and access to essential primary health services
• Objective 3: Support to central role of health workforce in the response
• The Public Health Response Officer COVID-19 will be responsible for providing technical assistance to the State COVID-19 response working closely with other technical leads to ensure programme outcomes are achieved.
• S / he will coordinate interventions, activities and technical support to States in the implementation of COVID-19 response and report progress to the State C-19 Coordinator in the achievement of outcome.
• As such, He / she is expected to exercise judgement within broadly defined practices and policies in selecting methods, techniques, and ongoing evaluation of programme delivery and results.
• The Public Health Response Officer COVID-19 will be a member of the Borno / Yobe / Jigawa / Kaduna / Kano / Katsina / Lagos and Zamfara State team.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

• He / she will primarily support the delivery of Programme COVID-19 response support.
• He / she will work closely with the State Task Force on COVID-19 and the EOC in the State, proactively working with the MDAs and key stakeholders to identify and respond to their TA needs and accordingly identify and leverage resources to be deployed in the state under the leadership of the STL / State Coordinator.
• Periodically assess health threats, the state of COVID 19 referral system and support to essential health services, and the vital needs of the affected populations.
• Collaborate with state authorities and health partners to coordinate and implement C-19 and other public health response activities and recommend improvements.
• Provide analysis of the public COVID 19 risks, needs and capacities and advise on priority interventions for Lafiya and partners.
• Monitor progress towards achievement of health security coverage; analyse social determinants of health and their impact on the COVID 19 incident management system, including identifying inequities, gaps in the delivery of health services or emergency interventions, recommending appropriate actions and innovative approaches to improve the situation.
• Facilitate the implementation of effective, evidence-based policies, on C-19 and other related public health programmes and interventions
• Secure information from a broad range of health sectors, analysing such and consolidating health data in trends and trends assessment, with particular attention to surveillance, monitoring and early warning.
• Provide input to communications and information products (Sitreps, EOC updates and COVID 19 reports etc.) as required.

Required Qualifications

• Master's Degree or higher in Public Health, Health Economics, Development Studies or other relevant field required.
• Must be an experienced health professional.
• Must have a sound knowledge on COVID-19 and Health system security situation and response
• Proven experience working in Health Sector in developing countries, preferably in Nigeria
• Demonstrable capacity to network and negotiates with key stakeholders across different sectors in support of health.
• Strong skills in design, implementation and monitoring of program components; e.g. health systems strengthening, supportive supervision, advocacy and coordination.
• Excellent facilitation and mentoring skills’ supporting decentralized entities to translate policies into strategic plans for implementation
• Experience with technical assistance for programs funded by DFID and / or other donor programs in developing countries, with significant Northern Nigeria experience.
• Demonstrated technical depth and understanding of the health policy environment and governance in Nigeria, particularly in the Northern Nigeria preferred.
• Experience in coordination and collaboration of stakeholders including government agencies / institutions, the private sector, CSOs and international donor agencies.
• Strong interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills in English required, working knowledge of Hausa and other local languages preferred
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Demonstrated problem solving, analytic, and evaluative skills.
• Attention to detail and ability to effectively and efficiently perform multiple tasks and balance competing priorities often within a required timeframe.