About The Role
We believe that exceptional service delivery, real-time learning, and an iterative feedback loop are core to building game-changing healthcare programs at scale. We recently secured Stage 2 funding from USAID’s Development Innovation Ventures, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Grand Challenges Canada to test a more transparent and accountable model of delivery of global health funding. This model enables point of care reimbursement for essential health products via mobile money, which has the potential to transform the fundamentals of health financing in low- and middle-income countries. We are looking for a strong leader and analytical thinker to help us build this into a flagship program demonstrating the potential of data-driven healthcare delivery for the bottom of the pyramid. The ideal candidate will:
Be excited to grow our network of pharmacies reimbursing for care from 10 to 200+, including building operations, supply chain and training systems required to achieve this
Work with clinical advisors to develop clinical protocols to ensure pharmacies and clinics provide high-quality care
Engage with our tech team to build a scalable reimbursement product that has the potential to impact the lives of millions of people
Be keen to help drive debates around how to structure reimbursement to improve quality of care and expand access in rural areas, with a focus on ensuring medication adherence and incentivizing use of diagnostic tests and WHO prequalified medication
Be interested in working with our health economics research partners to test ideas at a small scale before rolling them out across our network
Reporting To The Chief Operating Officer, You Will
The ideal candidate will be comfortable with ambiguity, able to respond quickly to changing conditions, and excited that we could be growing the program over the next year from two service lines that we support now (contraceptives and malaria care) to potentially 5-6 (with HIV ARVs, antenatal and postnatal care, and non-communicable disease care in the pipeline). In this role, the Director of Programs will lead Maisha Meds program development in Kenya and across the region.
Develop and lead operations for our core reimbursement programs: With support from our COO and other leadership, you will develop our operations systems for scaling our reimbursement product, structuring onboarding and training programs, ensuring compliance with regulation and clinical best-practice, and ensure that we are gathering learnings and feedback from sites to help us improve our programs. Our Director of Programs will:
Build the team to support a network of healthcare providers for our reimbursement systems
Set KPIs and structure work plans to ensure we hit targets and with strong execution
Manage all activities relating to achieving scale and service delivery objectives and targets
Motivate our team to align their work streams in support of operational targets and objectives
Lead development of our reimbursement systems: You will develop clinical pathways and protocols; help us structure small-scale pilots and learning activities to help set reimbursement rates and copayments; and help us identify further priority products and expansion plans for new geographies. You will:
Oversee clinical protocol development for all new programs that we may support (HIV, diabetes, hypertension, antenatal care, and possibly cervical cancer self-swabs) and refine existing protocols to ensure high quality of care
Conduct small-scale operational research to decide how to structure subsidies to ensure med adherence and affordability of high-value products with low adoption rates currently
Help us to develop and prioritize the pipeline of potential future programs, expansion geographies, and partnerships for patient engagement and acquisition
Lead engagement with our tech team to support product development and iteration: You will work directly with a team of software engineers to ensure that we are building world-class tech, with a focus on user experience, A/B testing for copayments and messaging, and patient identification / fraud mitigation. You will:
Develop a feedback loop to the tech team for refining and expanding our tech product
Help us build a proof of concept for A/B testing, with a focus on setting copayment based on patient demographics and ability to pay for care
Evaluate technical integrations with potential partnerships, develop low fidelity ways of testing partnerships before engaging the tech team
Qualifications
We are seeking someone with a mix of operational and clinical experience who has worked in and engaged with African health systems. Candidates who fit the following criteria are strongly encouraged to apply:
Strategic leader and strong project manager with a track record of building and managing successful teams, including experience with complex field operations
Experience building clinical protocols, training programs, or similar systems
Growth mindset and enthusiasm for learning, feedback and continuous improvement
Humility and personal stability. We are looking for passionate professionals that combine strong leadership skills with good humor, patience, and a humble approach to service
Collaborative team player who can engage leaders across the organization to meet strategic objectives
Experience managing team performance, including recruiting future leaders and developing them to achieve their potential
Ability to roll up one’s sleeves and directly move projects forward
Strong data skills; advanced Excel a plus
Excellent written and verbal communication skills
Swahili language skills
We would prefer to have you based in Nairobi, with regular travel to our main office in Kisumu
Why You Should Join Us
Maisha Meds aims to leverage technology to solve problems that affect millions of people across sub-Saharan Africa. Though we can’t offer you catered meals and conference bikes like in Silicon Valley, we can promise you an opportunity to drive real, quantifiable change that literally saves lives. We are dedicated to our work and care deeply about our product’s impact. You’ll join our small and friendly team to grow Maisha Meds into a company serving tens of millions of people.
Start date is March 2020, and compensation is commensurate with experience.
