Consultant - Recognition of learning achievement in continuing education for health and care workers

Purpose of consultancy

A consultant is sought to develop draft Global standards to recognize learning achievement in continuing education for health and care workers.

Background

Continuing education, including continuing professional development (CPD) and continuing medical education (CME), is vital for maintaining the competence of all health and care workers, ensuring they remain updated with evidence-based clinical guidelines, essential for the optimization of patient safety and quality of care. Yet, there are significant disparities in the availability and delivery of quality continuing education, and systems to recognise learning achievement across countries. While education and learning in the health economy has increasingly adopting competency-based approaches in its design and delivery, the landscape of micro-credentials that represent the outcomes of learning are of varying scale and often rooted in time-based awards based on participation rather than learning achievement. Global standards to recognize learning achievement do not yet exist in a form that is relevant across occupations and geographies. This contributes towards challenges in the efficiency, quality, optimization and impact of education and learning investments for a fit-for-purpose workforce.

WHO, together with UN partner organizations, plans to develop standards to recognize learning achievement for health and care workers, covering formal education, non-formal education, and informal learning. These standards aim to address disparities in the quality of continuing education across diverse occupations and geographies, by leveraging principles of adult learning theory, and be compatible with digitally-enabled systems such as micro-credentials or digital passports.

Deliverables

• Deliverable 1: Consensus on the concept note, topic areas and initial descriptions
  • Activity 1.1: Thematic analysis of literature review to inform the topic areas and descriptions
  • Activity 1.2: Consultation with key stakeholders and experts on the concept note, topic areas and descriptions

NB A literature review has been conducted and the results will be provided to the appointed consultant.
Expected by: March 2025

• Deliverable 2: Facilitate technical discussions with a Technical Expert Group, stakeholders and other subject matter experts
  • Activity 2.1: Provide orientation for new and potential members to the work
  • Activity 2.2: Prepare technical documents and other written materials to inform engagement, consultation, feedback, discussion and consensus
  • Activity 2.3: Facilitate meetings and consultations with Technical Expert Group members, stakeholders and other subject matter experts

Expected by: July 2025

• Deliverable 3: Zero draft standards and implementation guidance
  • Activity 3.1: Consultation on the template for the standards
  • Activity 3.2: Coordinate the approach to building the evidence base to underpin implementation guidance
  • Activity 3.3: Preparation of a zero draft standards and an annotated outline of the implementation guidance for consultation

Expected by: July 2025

Qualifications, experience, skills and languages

Educational Qualifications

Essential:

• Advanced university degree relevant to health workforce, health worker education and training and/or public health.

Experience

Essential:

• Over 10 years of experience in:
  • Development and implementation of norms, standards and global guidance for health worker education
  • Competency-based continuing education design principles, development and delivery
  • Facilitating partnership mechanisms and collaborations
  • Applied secondary research approaches including thematic analysis

Skills/Knowledge

Essential:

• Best practices in competency-based continuing education design and delivery in health
• The challenges and approaches to health worker education and training in different contexts (high and low income settings, digital, blended/hybrid and face to face, short courses and programmes)
• Regulatory frameworks and standards relating to continuing education design, delivery and recognition, ideally as it relates to health
• Stakeholder landscape for the recognition of learning achievement, ideally as it relates to health
• Approaches to partnership building for the development of technical policies, norms and standards
• Commitment to continuous quality improvement

Languages and level required

Essential:

• Expert knowledge of English

Location

Offsite: Home-based

Travel

The consultant is not expected to travel.

Remuneration and budget (travel costs are excluded)

Remuneration

Band level C: USD 500 - 625 per day

Living expenses (A living expense is payable to on-site consultants who are internationally recruited)

N/A

Expected duration of contract

6 months part-time at 50%. Remuneration will be pro-rated accordingly.

Additional Information:

• This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar consultancies at the same level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• If your candidature is retained for interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
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