Assistant Public Health Officer
Organizational Setting and
Work Relationships
The Assistant Public
Health Officer is a member of a multidisciplinary team and will ensure that
UNHCR’s public health programmes meet minimum UNHCR and global health standards
to minimise avoidable morbidity and mortality among populations of concern (POC)
and towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Assistant Public
Health Officer is normally supervised by a (Senior) Public Health Officer or by
the Head of Office/ Senior Operations/ Assistant Representative (Operations).
The incumbent has a functional line with the Public Health Section in Geneva
regarding authoritative guidance and support in technical matters and is
expected to maintain regular contact with the PHS and the Regional Bureau.
Duties and Responsibilities
Coordination and Partnership
Assist
in the coordination of public health, reproductive health, nutrition and HIV
activities within the Area of Responsibility (AOR) in support of the government
responses and in conjunction with other UN agencies, non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) and other partners, including development actors to ensure
delivery of public health and nutrition services to beneficiaries (POC
and host community) meet UNHCR and /or nationally recognised and most
up-to-date standards and policies.
With
support from the supervisor, support the Operation to define the level and
scope of UNHCR¿s involvement in public health and nutrition responses in terms
of overall and operational objectives during emergencies and beyond.
In
line with the Global Compact on Refugees work with governments and humanitarian
and development partners to ensure a complementary approach to meet the health
needs of POCs.
Represent
UNHCR in health coordination and other meetings including inter-sectoral groups
such as Technical Working Groups for MHPSS and nutrition.
Engage
in relevant partnership fora, including in line with UNHCR¿s role as a UNAIDS
co-sponsor of the Joint Programme on AIDS and co-lead with WFP of the Division
of Labour area of HIV in Humanitarian Settings.
Support
operational collaboration with WFP including the implementation of Joint
Assessment Missions and corresponding Joint Plans of Action in line with global
commitments on targeting assistance to meet basic needs and data sharing to
support assistance distribution (in collaboration with programme and protection
colleagues),
Support
emergency responses to new refugee influxes or outbreaks or other situations in
line with the Public Health Emergency Toolkit UNHCR’s Emergency Handbook and
the SPHERE Handbook.
Strategic planning and
development
Contribute
to the implementation of UNHCR’s Strategic Plan for Public Health and
Adaptation at the country level.
Work
with others in UNHCR to advocate for refugees, returnees and other POCs’ access
to local public health, reproductive health (RH) HIV, MHPSS and nutrition
services (including food assistance where relevant) and lobby for inclusion of
refugees, returnees and other POC as a specific group in government policies
and plans related to health, RH and HIV as well as major donor programmes such
as the Global Fund for HIV, TB and Malaria.
Contribute
to public health strategies addressing known gaps in health and nutrition
programming based on country-specific needs assessments with due consideration
to neonatal and maternal health care, TB and viral hepatitis, palliative care,
health services for LGBTI individuals, health and protection services for
persons selling sex and programming for persons with disabilities including
access to assistive technologies and appropriate associated services.
Support
the monitoring of country-specific medium to long-term inclusion plans in
support of the Ministry of Health and other relevant Ministries (e.g. Social
Welfare) and partnership with development and other actors.
Work
with stakeholders, including UN agencies, NGOs, Ministries of Health and
academic institutions in the development of public health response plans
associated with refugee movements (including in repatriation programmes).
Maintain
and update contingency plans within the AOR for potential epidemics, refugee
and returnee movements.
Technical integrity and
risk mitigation
Update
and disseminate standard practices on public health, MHPSS, nutrition, HIV and
reproductive health among partners.
Support
the prioritization of primary health care (including preventive, promotive,
curative, rehabilitative and palliative care)
Monitor,
in close coordination with other humanitarian actors, that health care services
provided to POC are based on the Ministry of Health, UNHCR and/or
internationally recognized and most up-to-date standards and policies.
Support
the adaptation of UNHCR internal operating procedures to ensure they are in
line with UNHCR and/or international standards and improve the efficiency of
programme activities; this includes but is not limited to referral health care,
medicines and medical supplies procurement and management, medical resettlement
and resettlement of persons with health needs, cash-based assistance for health
care coverage and referral between units and inter-sectoral collaboration.
Monitor
and support compliance with, and integrity of, all public health standard
operating procedures in conjunction with Project Control and Programme staff
and in line with delegated authorities, including flagging to senior managers
when these are not in line with global guidance or not being followed.
Collaboration
Support
linkages of public health to WASH programmes throughout all stages of the
programme cycle including outbreak preparedness and response, emergency
responses to refugee influxes, WASH in health facilities, and menstrual hygiene
management.
Support
inter-sector collaboration throughout all stages of the programme cycle between
public health and nutrition with WASH, education, environment, shelter, and
protection to promote synergies and maximise impact.
Assist
with the review and analysis of relevant project proposals and budgetary
submissions presented by UNHCR partners within the context of the UNHCR
programming cycle.
Seek
the diverse views of men, women, girls and boys, adolescents, youth, older
persons, persons with disabilities and LGBTI in assessing needs, designing,
implementing and monitoring responses in line with UNHCR¿s policy on age,
gender and diversity mainstreaming.
Contribute
to the implementation of the UNHCR Health Information System and other relevant
data collection tools including the balanced scorecard, maternal and neonatal
death audits, Health Access and Utilisation Survey and other corporate tools
where relevant; support the analysis, interpretation and use of public health
data.
Advocate
for the inclusion of refugees and other POC in national surveys such as
demographic and health surveys, multi-indicator cluster surveys, and AIDS
indicator surveys including where possible a separate sample for refugees
allowing for comparisons and trend analysis over time.
Support
national health systems to disaggregate data by refugees and nationals in key
areas based on country-specific needs in line with the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development.
Assist
in the monitoring of public health and nutrition programmes against standard
UNHCR and international indicators, to ensure that programmes are
evidence-based and implemented comprehensively and cost-effectively.
Support
the planning, implementation, analysis, dissemination and use of nutritional
surveys (Standardized Expanded Nutrition Surveys, SENS), health-related surveys
and post-distribution monitoring exercises (in collaboration with WFP).
In
line with policies for Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) ensure POC
have access to feedback and accountability mechanisms relating to public health
and nutrition services including the collection and analysis of data on their
satisfaction with regards to public health and nutrition services.
Draft
regular sectoral reports and submit material for the preparation of periodic
project monitoring reports as required by the office at the country level.
Provide
timely updates to enable adequate reporting and briefings to donors and
management.
Capacity Building
Support
capacity strengthening of UNHCR and its implementing partners to address public
health, nutrition, reproductive health, HIV, and MHPSS programming in a
coordinated, multi-sectoral way and disseminate relevant guidelines and
information materials.
Undertake
and/or support capacity building needs assessments of UNHCR staff and partners
and develop approaches to address capacity gaps including identifying internal
and external training opportunities.
Perform
other related duties as required.
Minimum Qualifications
Education &
Professional Work Experience
Years
of Experience / Degree Level
For
P1/NOA 1 year relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or no experience
with Graduate degree; or no experience with Doctorate degree
Field(s) of Education
Medicine,
Medical Science, Medical Doctor, Nursing, Public Health or other relevant field.
(Field(s)
of Education marked with an asterisk* are essential)
Certificates and/or
Licenses
Not
specified
(Certificates
and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)
Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Knowledge
of public health, reproductive health and nutrition
Good
communicator with strong interpersonal and negotiation skills.
Desirable
Additional
qualifications in Nutrition and WASH and a thorough understanding of the
linkages with public health and Food security.
Ability
to coordinate a range of diverse actors and activities to achieve a common
objective in the area of Public Health.
Functional Skills
EL-Monitoring
and Evaluation
PHPublic
Health Epidemiology
MD-Reproductive
Health
PH-Community
Health-Health Data Collection/Analysis/Interpretation
UN-UN/UNHCR
Mandate and Global Strategic Priorities
(Functional
Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)
Language Requirements
For
International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and the
UN working language of the duty station if not English.
For
National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the
duty station if not English and local language.
For
General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the
duty station if not English.
Additional Qualifications
Skills
EL-Monitoring
and Evaluation, MD-Reproductive Health, PH-Community Health-Health Data
Collection/Analysis/Interpretation, PHPublic Health Epidemiology, UN-UN/UNHCR
Mandate and Global Strategic Priorities
Education
Bachelor
of Arts (BA): Medical Doctor, Bachelor of Arts (BA): Medical Science, Bachelor
of Arts (BA): Medicine, Bachelor of Arts (BA): Nursing, Bachelor of Arts (BA):
Public Health Certifications
Work Experience
Competencies
Accountability,
Analytical thinking, Client & results orientation, Commitment to continuous
learning, Communication, Empowering & building trust, Judgement &
decision making, Managing resources, Organizational awareness, Planning &
organizing, Stakeholder management, Teamwork & collaboration
How To Apply
Closing Date: November 15,
2023
