Country: Senegal
Closing date: 29 Mar 2016
GENERAL CONTEXT
Médecins Sans Frontières is an international independent medical-humanitarian organization, which offers assistance to populations in distress, to victims of natural or man-made disasters and to victims of armed conflict, without discrimination and irrespective of race, religion, creed or political affiliation. The MSF movement is built around five operational directorates supported by 24 sections and offices worldwide. MSF OCBA is one of those directorates. The operations are implemented by field teams and the mission coordination teams; together with the organizational units based in Barcelona, Athens and decentralised in Nairobi, Dakar and Amman. The field operations are guided and supported by 4 Operational Cells, the Emergency Unit and other departments supporting operations, including the Finances department.
The Dakar Unit is a decentralised structure within MSF OCBA which role and purpose is to support operations within the region (West and Central Francophone Africa). This is done through providing technical (paediatrics and epidemiology), operational (advices, analyses), training (facilitation of the organisation of regional training) representation and advocacy support to field missions and the Cells in HQ who are managing them.
The Dakar Unit structure is currently made of one Head of Unit, one epidemiologist, one paediatrician, one administrator and one driver. Under the Operations Department, the Dakar Unit host decentralised position of the same department (Head of Unit) and of the medical department (paediatrician, epidemiologist).
GENERAL OBJECTIVE AND JOB ENVIRONMENT:
Hierarchically accountable to the Dakar Unit Epidemiologist, his/her mission will be to provide requested support for the documentation and activities monitoring surveys of identified MSF OCBA medical activities in West and Central Africa (the portfolio will be define depending on the needs). S/he will work closely with the epidemiology advisor based in Dakar and field teams.
The successful applicant will be in charge to support and enhance better documentation of MSF OCBA medical activities in the region (Francophone Central and West Africa) working on specific dossier (nutrition, malaria, measles…) to capitalise MSF experience.
S/he will Support and/or carry out all activities related to surveys training and implementation, data collection and data analyses in MSF project based in Central and West Africa, according to cell 2 and cell 3 priorities and following MSF protocols in order to have reliable results.
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES AND TASKS
1/ Staff Training
® Update /create basic epidemiology training tools
® Ensure data manager and local epidemiology focal point training
® Ensure post training individualised follow up and make clear suggestion to reinforce Epi Pool member capacity at local level.
® Write a post training report and ensure its MSF internal diffusion
2/Surveys
® Ensure protocol written for mortality, nutrition, post measles campaign and coverage surveys
® Ensure staff training prior to the survey implementation
® Conduct pilot stage of each survey prior to the implementation
® Ensure each survey implementation according to the cell 2 and 3 request
® Ensure technical validation of the survey protocol by epidemiologist advisor in a short delay after written
® Ensure in collaboration with the mission coordination the protocol submission to the local health authorities if national ethical board approval agreement is not possible.
® Ensure MSF internal exemption or approval agreement procurement prior to any survey implementation in the project.
® Ensure data entry is properly done and support data analysis and survey report writing
3/ Capitalization
® Identify in collaboration with Missions, Cells and Dakar Unit topic of interest for operational department and medical department for capitalization.
® Gathered all information from our different partner (MoH, Epicentre, other MSF ….) to make exhaustive documentation on the define topic.
® Define with the epidemiology advisor appropriate documentation plan according to objectives
® Develop in collaboration with the epidemiology advisor a statistical analyse plan for the documentation
® Perform all relative analyse and make them validate
® Ensure report writing for the documentation
Ensure final result diffusion internally to MSF but also to our partners when relevant (MoH, others MSF, epicentre….).
SELECTION CRITERIA
Ø Education and experience
· Degree in epidemiology or in public health with extensive experience in epidemiology
· Medical doctor is an asset.
· Knowledge of and interest in Public Health and infectious disease control.
· Experience and / or interest in research desirable.
· One-year experience working in applied epidemiology (cluster survey, studies, clinical research) or with MSF / Epicentre experience.
· Basic knowledge of standards in terms of health in MSF projects, including emergencies and epidemics.
· Good knowledge and experience with regards to IT software for processing texts, graphics and statistics (Microsoft Word, Excel). Knowledge of Epi-info series is a must.
· Experience in field epidemiology contexts of acute epidemics (meningitis, cholera, measles…) desirable.
· Fluent English and French a must. Other language an asset.
· Tracked records in leading study / survey
Ø Competences
· Teamwork.
· Analysis capacity, initiative and autonomy.
· Quality and result-driven.
· Capacity for interrelating with people and communication skills.
· Flexibility and adaptability.
· Good communication and pedagogic skills to work as an advisor.
CONDITIONS
- Position based in Dakar (Senegal) with regular field visits (estimated to up to 70% of time)
- 12 months of temporary contract with possible extension at the end of the period according to internal analysis
- Salary conditions based on experiences and according to MSF rules including secondary benefits.
- Commitment one year
- Starting date: Immediately
How to apply:
Applicants please send cv and motivation covering letter with a photograph included, under the reference “Flying.Epi.Dakar.” to:**
recruitment-bcn@barcelona.msf.org
Replies will only be sent to short-listed candidates.