In 2009, an estimated 3 million babies died during
the neonatal period (the first 28 days of life). Infections caused
approximately 13% of these deaths. Three-quarters of neonatal deaths occur in
the first week of life, and more than one-quarter occur in the first 24 hours.
In Nigeria, sepsis is one of the three leading causes of neonatal mortality.
Nationally, sepsis and other infections account for 16% of neonatal deaths.
USAID’s Maternal and Child Survival Program (MCSP)
in Nigeria is focused on improving the quality of maternal, newborn and child
health at facility-level in Kogi and Ebonyi States. In July 2017 MCSP, in
partnership with the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine,
conducted a study to identify the behavioral barriers and motivators to
practicing appropriate hygiene during the highest risk period for both newborn
sepsis and puerperal sepsis in mothers, the period from the onset of labor
through the first two days of life. With the findings from this study, MCSP
aims to develop and pilot a set of WASH activities aimed at improving hygiene
practices of health care staff and caregivers from the onset of labor through
the first two days of life.
Concurrently, MCSP plans to examine the resource,
management, staffing, and behaviors and protocol needs to achieve optimal
WASH/infection prevention control (IPC) within inpatient newborn care wards.
MCSP will develop WASH-IPC guidelines (and corresponding activities) and pilot
test the aforementioned draft indicators and activities for inpatient newborn
care in facilities. The results from the pilot tests will then inform the
integration of newborn care area hygiene in MCSP Nigeria’s broader maternal,
newborn and child health, quality of care and WASH activities.
Job
Title: Reduction Of Newborn Sepsis Pilot Program
Location: Abuja
Overview
of Assigned Tasks
The Consultant will be tasked with leading the
development, implementation and monitoring of WASH activities in 6 health
facilities in Kogi and/or Ebonyi States over a six month period. The consultant
will also be responsible for developing and testing WASH-IPC guidelines for
inpatient newborn care wards. It is imperative that pilot activities are
integrated with existing MCSP maternal, newborn and child health and quality of
care activities.
The Consultant will report to the Senior Newborn
Health Advisor for MCSP Nigeria, but will work in close collaboration with
other MCSP maternal, newborn and quality improvement staff members both in
Abuja, Ebonyi and Kogi states and Washington DC. The assigned tasks and
deliverables for this scope of work include:
Program development and Start-up (Oct 23 – Dec 15,
2017)
The Consultant will participate in a design workshop
to develop program activities and timelines along with MCSP and SMoH staff.
Following the design workshop, the consultant will be responsible for leading
the developing the following potential products:
A finalized workplan and timeline of activities
WASH protocols (including standards, indicators and
best practices) for labor and delivery, inpatient newborn care spaces,
discharge counseling, and home care
WASH & IPC counseling materials for use during
discharge
Training package for integrating WASH
protocols/materials into ongoing MCSP maternal and newborn activities
Pilot program monitoring and evaluation plan
All products will be developed in close coordination
with relevant MCSP staff in Nigeria and the US. Each product will undergo an
iterative review process in which designated members of MCSP Nigeria and MCSP
Washington DC will contribute to and review each product.
Program implementation and monitoring (Jan 01, 2017
– March 19, 2018):
Upon finalization of all training packages,
monitoring tools and protocols, the Consultant will lead the implementation of
WASH activities in 6 health care facilities (assigned by the MCSP Nigeria
team). The consultant should be prepared to lead trainings with MCSP field
staff and health care facility staff. The consultant will also lead the
implementation of monitoring activities to test the effectiveness of pilot
activities.
Program Evaluation, Refinement and Reporting (March
26 –Apr 30, 2018):
Toward the end of the pilot period, the Consultant
will analyze and summarize program monitoring data. The Consultant will lead a
workshop to share findings from the pilot activities and discuss refinements in
protocols and activities to be scaled in MCSP impact areas. The Consultant
should be prepared to lead the planning of the workshop. Upon completion of the
workshop the Consultant will be required to submit an end of pilot report to
MCSP.
Deliverables
A finalized workplan and timeline of activities
(November 13, 2017)
Relevant training materials, protocols, and
counseling materials (December 12, 2017)
Pilot program monitoring plan (December 12, 2017)
Finalized End of Pilot and Refinement Workshop
agenda (Mar 27, 2018)
Host end of Pilot and Refinement Workshop (Apr 04,
2018)
Draft of Pilot Program Report (Apr 19, 2018)
Final End of Pilot Program Report, including an
overview of design workshop, pilot program methods and activities, findings
(from monitoring data), lessons learned ( from consultant and MCSP staff), and
a summary of the End of Pilot Refinement workshop (Apr 30, 2018)
Finalized WASH protocols (to include standards,
indicators, and best practices) for delivery room, inpatient newborn care
wards, discharge counseling and home care (Apr 30).
Present findings at dissemination meetings in both
states (Apr 30).
Qualifications
Advanced degree in public health, international
relations, clinical research or other related field
Experience implementing WASH and/or infection
prevention activities in health care facilities
Experience working in maternal health and/or newborn
health preferred
Experience
designing training materials, counseling materials, particularly for
health facility staff
Experience leading trainings: implementation
trainings and train-the-trainer trainings
Experience collecting and analyzing quantitative and
qualitative data
Demonstrated skills in report writing
Strong communication, analytical and writing skills
How
to Apply
Interested persons should click here to apply
Application
Closing Date
Applications should be submitted on or before 11th
October, 2017
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