Job Description

Posted on August 9, 2022

BACKGROUND 
WHO has established the emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) programme to help member states build their capacity to manage health emergency risks and, when national capacities are over whelmed, to lead and coordinate the international health response to contain outbreaks and to provide effective relief and recovery to affected populations. The programme is to support countries to enhance their all-hazards preparedness and to strengthen their IHR core capacities in prevention, preparedness, detection and early response to public health emergencies. The Zambia WHO Country Office EPR cluster is established for this purpose. Zambia has experienced four waves of COVID-19 pandemic with significant loss of lives and livelihoods and impact on the health and other sectors. The response needs have exerted immense pressure to the MOH, WHO and response partners, with significant fatigue among personnel. WHO has continued to play partners in support of the national response. With an uncertain COVIID-19 evolution, WHO Country Office (WCO) in Zambia plans to strengthen its workforce through recruitment of an epidemiologist to support routine programming and COVID-19 response with the aim of ensuring attainment of the WHO goal of protecting people from effects of health emergencies.
POST TITLE: Epidemiologist 
GRADE: NOB 
DUTY STATION: Lusaka 
DURATION: 6 months
DUTIES
Under the direct guidance of the WHO Country Representative, the Epidemiologist will perform the following tasks:

Provide technical expertise to guide implementation of the IDSR strategy at all levels of the system including the community
Provide technical expertise to guide implementation of the International Health Regulations (HR) 2005
Support Implementation of sentinel surveillance
Provide technical support to the national level, provinces and districts to investigate public health alerts/events and conduct field assessments and surveillance as needed
Support effective contact tracing
Support designing, in cooperation with technical partners, surveillance guidelines, protocols, surveys and monitoring/surveillance systems for detection, verification and response to public health incidents at the national level; ensuring efficiency of data collection, correlation, analysis, interpretation, timely reporting and coordinate the work of a network of subregional monitors, as well as provide technical guidance to the epidemiologists assigned, as required.
Conduct real-time analysis of outbreak intelligence data, for epidemic forecasting and detection, guide team members on data quality improvement, use of data for monitoring of trends, ALERT and ACTION thresholds (triggers), as well as methodologies for performing data quality audit (DOA).
Support the establishment and functionality of Rapid Response Teams (RRTS), early warning systems (including event based and indicator based surveillance) for epidemic and pandemic prone diseases for early detection and response to public health events, as well as, Public Health Management Committee (PHEMC) for potential hazards like infectious diseases, zoonotic events, food safety events and chemical events as per the national guidance and standards.
Contribute to the preparation of other WHO and health cluster communication products (situation reports, health cluster bulletins, donors alerts, and other ad-hoc reports).
Represent WHO in coordination meeting with partners involved in epidemiology and monitoring
Develop appropriate training plans for building the core surveillance, alert and response national capacities in accordance with the requirement for IHR 2005. Oversee the capacity building of health management teams and health facility staff
Provide technical support to data collation and analysis at all levels of the health system
Support establishment, expansion and monitoring and evaluation of electronic surveillance system.
Work with the team on reporting requirements, information system and data management needs, type and frequency of data analysis, and design as needed
Guide and contribute to the development and release of streps and reports
Assist to disseminate and orientate teams on relevant national guidelines and SOPS
Participate in technical capacity building efforts at national provincial and district levels
Provide technical support in annual planning and preparing response plans
Support all hazards assessments and research
Perform any other incident specific related duties, as required by the functional supervisor

QUALIFICATIONS:
Essential: A Master’s level University degree in epidemiology or public health
Desirable:

University degree in medicine, public health nursing or any medical field
Training in IDSR emergency response and disaster management

EXPERIENCE
Essential: Minimum 5 years extensive experience in quantitative epidemiology and the Implementation of public health surveillance, outbreak investigation and response in humanitarian settings, implementation of Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR)
Desirable:

Working at national level
Working with international organizations, or international assignment experience

SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE

Proven knowledge and skills in: epidemiology, surveillance, data analysis, mapping and reporting
Strong organizational skills
Ability to work effectively in multicultural environment with tact and diplomacy
Knowledge of WHO, the UN System or NGO work in the field of response relief and/or of their practices and procedures
Sound knowledge and skills in database management and statistical analysis, secondary data review, survey designing and implementation, monitoring and evaluation systems design or use, and public health information management.
Proven ability to multitask across various planning and implementation processes within a highly demanding environment.
Demonstrated knowledge, competency and professional skills on the public health aspects of infectious disease control, epidemic and pandemic preparedness and response with particular attention to application of an all-hazard approach in the context of the International Health Regulations and the use of event based and indicator based surveillance, as well as descriptive epidemiology and principles of public health in communicable disease surveillance and response

LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT

Excellent spoken and written English (essential)

 
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Applications accompanied by Curriculum Vitae detailing previous work experience and copies of certificates, diplomas and testimonials should be emailed to [email protected]

Deadline for receiving applications will be 07 May 2022.

Only shortlisted candidates will have their applications acknowledged.

World Health Organisation has a policy on Zero-tolerance to Fraud, all forms of Harassment Sexual Exploitation and Abuse

Skills: