Job description
MSH seeks to recruit a highly-motivated and result-oriented Senior Technical Officer, Child and Newborn Health Senior Specialist for a five-year program (2016-2021), implemented in selected sub-counties in Baringo and Nakuru Counties. The purpose of the program is to enhance access to and utilization of quality family planning, reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health (RMNCAH) services in the target areas. The position will be based in Kuresoi, Nakuru County.
The Senior Technical Officer will oversee the strengthening of provider skills in newborn healthcare services by scaling up high impact interventions and reinforcing widely accepted standard care practices.
S/he will also be responsible for guiding the scale-up of the use of ORS/zinc in the management of diarrhoea in private facilities as well as addressing inequities in immunization coverage through the Reaching Every Community (REC) approach. The officer will utilize the national Harmonized Competency Based Training Curriculum for Obstetrics and Neonatal Care to ensure appropriate care at various levels as well as a reinforced referral system through continuous trainings and training of trainers.
Under the guidance of the Senior Technical Advisor, the officer will undertake the following activities;
Utilizing distance learning approaches, conduct trainings to review standard new-born care practices including early breastfeeding initiation and lactation counseling.
Introduce high-impact practices such as kangaroo mother care for preterm/low birth weight babies, chlorhexidine cord care, and neonatal resuscitation (Helping Babies Breathe). Additional topics will include compassionate and respectful counseling as well as injectable antibiotics for sepsis treatment.
Train and mentor healthcare workers at high-volume health facilities in an exchange program to ensure providers have practical supervised experience in a setting with sufficient caseload to ensure diversity and depth of experience.
Train trainers for the staff of private clinics and pharmacies to provide ORS/ZINC as part of their provided services.
Promote data review of the various mentoring and quality improvement approaches to ensure continuous provision and quality improvement.
Using tailored plans and Community Champions, among other approaches, collaborate with county authorities to design and implement a quality assurance strategy and to implement the Reaching Every Community (REC) approach to address inequities in immunization coverage.
The ideal candidate should have a minimum of Bachelor’s degree in public health or other related field with atleast 5 years demonstrated experience implementing new born and child healthcare interventions.
The candidate should have proven experience training healthcare workers in high volume settings. S/he should have strong written and oral presentation skills. In addition, s/he should have strong interpersonal, verbal and written communications, teamwork and partnering abilities.
Willingness to relocate to Kuresoi and to travel within Kenya required.
Management Sciences for Health (MSH), a global health nonprofit organization, uses proven approaches developed over 40 years to help leaders, health managers, and communities in developing nations build stronger health systems for greater health impact. We work to save lives by closing the gap between knowledge and action in public health. Since its founding in 1971, MSH has worked in over 150 countries with policy makers, health professionals, and health care consumers to improve the quality, availability and affordability of health services. Working with governments, donors, non governmental organizations, the private sector, and health agencies, MSH responds to priority health problems such as HIV & AIDS; tuberculosis; malaria; maternal, newborn and child health; family planning and reproductive health; and chronic non-communicable diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and lung and heart disease. Through strengthening capacity, investing in health systems innovation, building the evidence base, and advocating for sound public health policy, MSH is committed to making a lasting difference in global health.
Management Sciences for Health is an equal opportunity employer offering employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, citizenship, physical or mental disability, or veteran status.
Senior Technical Advisor
