CONTEXT PRESENTATION:

Un Ponte Per (UPP) is an Italian NGO established in 1991. It started its activities as “Un Ponte Per Baghdad”, in the aftermath of the first Gulf War, intending to organize solidarity initiatives in support of the Iraqi civilian population. In subsequent years, UPP missions expanded to include Serbia and other Middle Eastern and Mediterranean countries. The NGO aims at preventing armed conflicts, protecting human rights and support local civil society, especially in the Middle East, by promoting the nexus between its humanitarian, peacebuilding and development programs.

Since 2015, UPP has been one of the leading INGOs in the North East Syria (NES) response, providing humanitarian aid and capacity building of local actors in Health and Protection as well as environmental health, including waste management. In partnership with local partners, UPP has been able to develop a comprehensive system of health services delivered in 26 facilities, including mobile units, hospitals, primary health care centres, and an ambulance network. For further information please refer to our website: www.unponteper.it/en/

SCOPE OF WORK

The HEALTH SPECIALIST - PRIMARY HEALTH CARE will work under the supervision of the Health Coordinator in the Health Department, and in coordination with the relevant Project Manager and the HoP of UPP Syria Mission, and with the Health Programme Desk at HQ, to oversee the design, implementation, continued quality monitoring, and evaluation of primary health care services supported by UPP grants, in line with donors’ and best international standards; and to strengthen the capacities and coach local health care professionals in the provision of quality and safe health care. The desired professional also holds a specific expertise in IPC, Outbreak Preparedness, Prevention&Response and Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) and will ensure the adherence to IPC measures, and the coordination of activities related to preparedness and response to outbreaks, including those related to community health through the Community Health Care workers. In line with the tasks mentioned above, the Specialist role is also to advise the Programme Department in the decision-making process and deliver project-related documents according to donor requirements, with the programmatic direction and guidance of the relevant Project Manager and in coordination with the Health Coordinator.

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The HEALTH SPECIALIST – PRIMARY HEALTH CARE (PHC) will be responsible for:

Technical advice, coordination, monitoring, and reporting:

•       Coordinate the design, the planning, and the monitoring activities to ensure that primary health care services managed by UPP or by the local implementing partner are delivered according to donors’ and international health standards, in strict collaboration with the implementing partner/local stakeholders;

•       Develop and organize efficient and comprehensive primary care services, including staff allocation, patient flow, and emergency intervention by doctors, nurses, and paramedics;

•       Ensure accurate and insightful reporting on a monthly basis from health facilities, feeds into programming so that emerging morbidities are addressed timely;

•       Coordinating and ensuring the integration between the different packages of services in the health facility (Emergency, Communicable Diseases, Maternal, Child Health, and Chronic Disease programmes);

•       Advising on the design and operation of clinical medicine and nursing services, including emergency and programme development;

•       Advising and organizing the general clinical services with a particular focus on planning, developing, and training in infectious disease in primary care settings

•       Supporting, advising, and leading on IPC and Outbreaks Preparedness&Response, surveillance system, and RCCE initiatives linked to Outbreak Prepardness&Response through the CHWs initiative.

•       Develop, or review sectors-specific guidelines and policy papers with the necessity to offer updates as required;

•       Coordinate and supervise the work of local Health Specialist and Officers in charge of monitoring the assigned PHCCs;

•       Monitoring the implementation of guidelines, protocols, and tools in health facilities in collaboration with partners, in line with the Health Cluster and sector standards;

•       Follow up on health facilities and ensure that tools and procedures to improve quality of care are available to teams and promote continuous quality improvement in the services delivered;

•       Lead early detection and investigation of outbreaks in the supported facilities, prepare outbreak response plans based on the existing capacity, including the requirements of medical supplies and equipment, and follow the implementation of the activities;

•       Regularly monitor and review health information data and registers providing follow-up and feedback and sharing results with project coordination team;

•       Identify and implement appropriate facility- and community-based strategies to address priority outbreak-prone public health problems in coordination with the partners;

•       Ensure that the health program conducts regular (Semi-annual) infection prevention and control (IPC) quality assessments and develops quality improvement plans;

•       Contribute to elaborate M&E data for reporting purposes, in strict coordination with the MEAL Manager, and support the introduction of new monitoring tools as needed;

•       Supporting the project managers in the reporting activities and Monitoring the overall functioning of health care services, meeting the challenges identifying gaps and bottlenecks, recommending possible solutions pathways;

•       Conducting regular field monitoring visits engaging with partners, and developing and implementing contingency tools for remote monitoring in case physical access is limited due to extraordinary circumstances;

•       Advising and collaborating with the Project Manager/s about project activities, implementation, monitoring, and reporting;

External coordination: