CARE Canada Djibouti Health Coordinator

Introduction :

The Republic of Djibouti is a mainly Muslim country bordering Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. The total population is estimated at 818,600, of which, more than 70% live in urban centres. In rural areas, an estimated two-thirds of the population is pastoralists. Djibouti has an arid climate, which is mostly made up of volcanic desert and rocky soil, creating an inhospitable environment for raising livestock and agriculture. Agriculture is therefore extremely limited and meets only 3% of the country’s food requirements. Two consecutive failed rains combined with soaring food and fuel prices have dramatically increased food insecurity in Djibouti. The crisis has resulted in substantial loss of livestock, destruction of livelihoods, and degradation of fields and pastures. The UN now estimates that 146,000 people are experiencing a food security crisis in Djibouti.

Djibouti also hosts over 20,000 refugees, mainly from Somalia (70% of which are women and children) in Ali Addeh camp located in Ali Sabieh District in Djibouti. According to the Camp Administrator, between 120 and 130 refugees are arriving on a weekly basis. Due to the scale of new arrivals and the limited capacity of UNHCR and its partners, the camp does not meet minimum standards. These new arrivals are putting substantial pressure on the host community, which has been severely affected by the current drought. Malnutrition, as well as lack of water (less than 10 litres of water per day) and limited livelihood opportunities mean that the host community finds itself in a particularly precarious situation. Due to the increasing number of refugees living in Ali Addeh camp and the poor living conditions in the host community, UNHCR and the Government of Djibouti have decided to re-open the Hol-Hol refugee camp, which was closed in 2006 following the large-scale voluntary repatriation of Somali refugees.

Twelve months ago CARE took over the health center at Ali Addeh refugee camp from the Association of Medical Doctors of Asia (AMDA) who had been there for 20 years. The majority of the medical staff at the facility have been working there for several years. While AMDA focused primarily on curative care, some prevention services were also in place. The focus of the Health Coordinator will be to ensure that overall coordination of all health activities is strengthened in order to provide quality health care services.

Objectives: The objectives of the Health Coordinator are to assess / redefine/ develop / integrate and implement systems to: - Ensure overall quality of health care services by guiding and mentoring the 2 medical doctors and health center in-charges at Ali Addeh and Holl Holl in their roles as managers of the services.
- Ensure the drug and supply chain system is well functioning (using tools developed by the logistics advisor). Work closely with the pharmacist at Ali Sabieh and pharmacists at the health centers and the medical doctors. - Develop supportive supervision plan for all health center staff (adapt tools sent by Health Advisor and develop other tools if necessary) - Assess current medical management of severely malnourished children and address any gaps identified. Be sure to work with Nutrition Specialist in this area. - Support the Family Planning (FP), Post Abortion Care (PAC), and overall Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) services

Tasks and Responsibilities: Ensure overall quality of health care services - Ensure all staff have and understand their job description and their responsibilities - Ensure regular supportive supervision of all departments and follow up actions taken based upon findings from supervision - Ensure all staff are clear on standards of care including infection prevention protocols - Establish performance goals for service providers - Ensure capacity building plan is developed and implemented for health center staff (training, refresher courses, supportive supervision, etc…) - Assess and monitor medical doctor and nurse in-charge performance and make recommendations with regard to the development, motivation. - Adapt supervision tools and job aids provided by Health Advisor and develop new tools and checklists as needed

Encourage and facilitate teamwork within health and with other sectors including community outreach - Ensure integration of health education into health center activities. Community Health Workers (CHWs) trained and organized to conduct health education every morning while clients are waiting for consultation. Education should be based upon priority topics such as vaccinations, care during pregnancy and post partum including nutrition, infant and child nutrition, family planning, diarrhea prevention and treatment, etc… - Working with the Nutrition Specialist and the Field Coordinator, facilitate linkages between community health workers, Traditional Birth Attendant TBAs / Reproductive Health (RH) promoters, health committees (soon to be formed), and Association pour la protection et l’épanouissement de la famille (APEF) peer educators trained in FP, and the health workers. Help the field agents worked with various community partners. - Ensure the International Association for Statistical Computing (IASC) gender checklists for health are integrated into project implementation

Sexual Reproductive Health project support - Support Senior Reproductive Health (SRH Focal Point to lead all FP and PAC project activities - Ensure all FP and PAC supplies are available for trained staff.
- Ensure timely supervision of all newly trained staff in FP counselling using the Strategy Counselling Balanced SBC+ approach, Intra Uterine Device IUD and implant insertion, and PAC services - Implement the new FP and PAC project

Programme Management - Overall responsibility for effective and efficient management of the field Health/Nutrition project consistent with the project management cycle and CARE’s guidelines/procedures - Ensure quality of the program, in accordance with Sphere technical standards and World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines - Monitor expenditure and budget compliance on a regular basis, report any concerns to the Country Representative and develop plans to mitigate any under or over expenditure at project level. - Initiate and maintain regular project team meetings - Reporting in line with the relevant donor contracts and compliance requirements - Ensure monitoring systems are in place and that project reviews/audits are carried out periodically in conjunction with the team, Country Representative, local stakeholders and project partners - Monitor the evolving humanitarian situation in the project region and consider strategic and immediate responses to it or adjust activities accordingly. Medical data reporting and epidemiological surveillance

Programme Development - Ensure all relevant authorities and stakeholders are included in the planning and implementation of projects as appropriate - Draw up plans, proposals and budgets for new projects/extensions of projects in conjunction with the relevant teams: technical, financial and logistics teams - In charge of adapting/designing program strategy for provision of primary health care and nutritional care.

Representation - Carry out representation with other NGOs, UN agencies, local and national government bodies, donors and other relevant parties - key interlocutor with Ministry of Health (MoH) and WHO - When relevant and with the Country Representative approval, represent CARE to donors, authorities, NGOs and other parties as necessary. - Be the project’s contact with press and media, in discussion with the Country Representative, and capable of giving media interviews

Other Provide cover for other posts when needed and carry out any other responsibilities as requested by the Country Representative.

Person Specifications

Essential

• Recognised Medical qualification diploma
• Minimum of 5 years of humanitarian aid experience working overseas as a Medical Doctor with international NGOs or agencies
• Minimum of 3 years in a management/coordination role in Primary health care and nutritional care. A mixture of coordination role and medical experience in an INGO can compensate the experience as an expatriate requested
• Proven experience in Programming (including project proposal development, logical framework development, budget development, donor reporting)
• Strong communication skills, with excellent written and spoken English and French
• Experience of emergency preparedness and response
• Experience of financial, budget and administrative management
• Experience and understanding of logistics systems
• Experience of a flexible approach to managing and prioritizing a high workload and multiple tasks in a fast paced environment with tight deadlines
• Ability to work under stressful conditions and to remain flexible and calm under pressure
• Experience of proactively identifying and addressing issues
• Strong problem solving and organizational skills in day to day and crisis situations
• Experience of security management at the field site level
• Experience of establishing strong working relationships with colleagues from different functions and cultures
• Willing to live and work in challenging conditions
• Confident and proficient in the use of MS Office
• An understanding of and commitment to CARE’s mission and values

Desirable - Knowledge of Arabic - Previous experience in the region (Horn of Africa) - Experience as a donor liaison

How to apply: 

Contact information: Please apply online at www.careersunited.org or www.care.ca. You will need to register before submitting your resume. We thank all candidates for the responses to this advertisement. However, we regret that we will be able to contact only short listed candidates.