Consultant Scope of Work

  • Job Title: National Consultant (Pediatric and DR-TB)
  • Category of Staff: Short Term Technical Advisor(STTA)
  • Project: Systems for Improved Access to Pharmaceuticals and Services (SIAPS)
  • Contract: Maximum 105 Days (From  01 March - 30th September 2015) 

Background statement:
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded Systems for Improved Access to Pharmaceuticals and Services (SIAPS) program (Implemented by Management Sciences for Health-www.msh.org) is providing technical assistance to the MOHFW, its component directorates (Directorate General of Health Services- DGHS, Directorate General of  Family Planning-DGFP, Directorate General of  Drug Administration-DGDA) and other key entities (National Tuberculosis Program-NTP) to strengthen the capacity of policy makers, health care providers and institutions to improve health commodity management, with an emphasis on governance, procurement, institutional capacity building, health information system and other Health System Strengthening (HSS) initiatives, aimed at ensuring continuous availability of commodities required to support health care delivery and the timely availability of reliable data to support evidence based decision making.

MSH seeks to recruit a local consultant for providing short-term support for implementation of the Bangladesh Drug Use Review (DUR) Program for DR treatment regimens in select DR treatment centers. In close collaboration with the Bangladesh National Tuberculosis Program, Programmatic Management of Drug Resistant Tuberculosis, and the Directorate General of Drug Administration (collectively referred to as the NTP in this document), s/he will be responsible for the adequate coordination of all activities to ensure that technical assistance activities are designed and implemented according to the activity tracker and that deliverables meet quality standards.  In addition the consultant will work with the SIAPS/Bangladesh activity lead and SIAPS HQ technical staff to assist in developing a model for collection and analysis of data related to pediatric TB, using the DUR exercise as well as other on-going activities supported by SIAPS Bangladesh, such as implementation of e-TB manager and pharmacovigilance (PV) activities. S/he will also support documentation of results of the SIAPS supported TB activities in Bangladesh. 

Specific Task to be performed:

  • The consultant in cooperation with the SIAPS TB team, NTP, and TB health care providers will provide technical assistance for the implementation of the DR-TB DUR program in Bangladesh. Specifically:
    • Contribute to the planning, implementation, and monitoring of TB operational research
    • Participate in training workshops
    • Assist the NTP develop implementation plans
    • Assist with TB unit DR-TB DUR orientations
    • Oversee data collection, data entry, and data set production
    • Assist the NTP with DR-TB DUR data analysis and interpretation
    • Monitor DR-TB DUR implementation progress and provide feedback to the SIAPS TB team and SIAPS Bangladesh team
  • In cooperation with SIAPS TB Team and HQ technical staff, the consultant will support the development of a model to use existing data sources to provide a comprehensive picture of pediatric tuberculosis. Specifically:
    • Analyze data from e-TB manager related to pediatric TB
    • Work with SIAPS Bangladesh PV technical staff to determine if reports from cases of pediatric TB are available, and analyze those that are
    • Analyze data on pediatric tuberculosis from DUR
    • Prepare report that describes triangulation of data from all sources
    • Develop tool to assess barriers to appropriate and effective pediatric TB pharmacotherapy and validate in Bangladesh
  • Support SIAPS and the NTP in the adequate documentation and dissemination of results and lessons learned from the abovementioned work.
  • Participate in regular weekly touch base call conference with the SIAPS Arlington Technical Supervisor and other SIAPS technical staff.
  • Ensure all agreed upon tasks listed in the implementation plan are completed in a timely manner.

Deliverables

  • Implementation Plan
  • Training reports
  • Data sets

Location
The consultant will be based in Dhaka

Travel
The consultant will be expected to travel in country, if necessary.

Preferred Skills/Qualifications

  • A degree in epidemiology, public health, medicine, behavioral or social science, statistics or health science is required
  • Experience in the development, implementation and evaluation of public health studies and projects and the analysis of  data and data collected from clinical or operational studies
  • Strong computer skills particularly in spreadsheets and databases (e.g., Epi Info)
  • Relevant experience in public health particularly in the implementation of TB prevention, care, and treatment programs, strengthening of National TB programs
  • Training and/or experience relating to pharmaceutical systems, management information systems, supply chain management or pharmaceutical services
  • Excellent communication skills (written and oral) in English.
  • Strong aptitude for analytical and investigative work
  • Detail-oriented
  • Prior experience in consulting, health sector, research, or other related jobs is preferred 
  • Strong organizational and interpersonal skills with the ability to work both independently and as a team member
  • Well developed writing skills

To apply, submit a complete CV with relevant consultant experience and send to mahossian@msh.org by COB Monday, February 23, 2015.