The Maternal and Newborn Health Improvement (MANI) Project seeks a Maternal and Newborn Health Advisor to join its team in Bungoma County, Kenya.
Project Background:
The MANI Project is run by an Options-led consortium of eight agencies (CARE Kenya, AMREF, Population Council, MannionDanniels, KPMG, IHPMR and MSI). The MANI Project is component three of a wider programme that looks at health systems strengthening and health financing targeting the poorest women in Bungoma County and implementation of an innovation challenge fund across six DFID-supported counties (Bungoma, Homa Bay, Garissa, Nairobi (slums), Kakamega and Turkana).
The programme’s strategy focuses on reducing the three common delays women face in accessing quality maternal and neonatal care, especially in Bungoma County. We will deliver the programme results under three integrated outputs:
Output 1: Strengthening health systems to manage and deliver quality maternal and newborn health (MNH) services, to ensure that women and newborns receive quality services (delay 3).
Output 2: Increasing demand for and uptake of MNH services to ensure that mothers and newborns seek and access the appropriate care (delays 1 and 2).
Output 3: Establishing and managing a Maternal and Newborn Health Innovations Challenge Fund to support innovative approaches to addressing challenges across the three delays.
Purpose of the Position:
The Maternal and Newborn Health (MNH) Advisor is responsible for the MANI project’s efforts to improve the quality of maternal and newborn health service delivery in Bungoma county through a systems strengthening approach. S/he works closely with senior county government colleagues, Sub/County Management Health Team (S/CMHT) members, health care workers, Community Health Volunteers (CHVs) and Community Health Extension Workers (CHEWs), MANI consortium staff and senior technical colleagues at Options Head Quarters.
Key performance areas include:
Technical Leadership and Advisory Services:provide technical guidance, advice and support to project counterparts to effectively implement activities across a broad range of MNH quality of care areas, including:
o Kenya Quality Model for Health (KQMH) – Quality Improvement Teams/Work Improvement Teams (QITs/WITs)
o Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response (MPDSR)
o Facility readiness to provide Comprehensive and Basic Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (C/BEmONC) services
o Hospital Management Boards (HMBs) and Health Facility Management Committees (HFMCs)
o Respectful maternity care
o Other relevant innovative approaches
Capacity Development: promote the development of health workers and management staff capacity in the above areas through a broad range of approaches such as curriculum development and training, one-on-one mentorship and on-the-job training, supportive supervision, etc.
Project Management: effectively plan, deliver and evaluate the implementation of activities and critically reflect and improve on project strategies to promote MNH quality service delivery
PeopleManagement:* effectively source and manage short term consultants to support priority activities, and supervise project staff if applicable
Partnership and Team Work: work closely with other project staff to ensure that project strategies and approaches are delivered in a coherent and coordinated way, in line with log frame targets, and build partnerships with other key organisations (LSTM, SAVE, etc.) to promote synergy
Person Specification:
Qualifications:
Bachelor’s degree in the health sciences
Master’s degree in the health sciences and /or clinical experience
Knowledge, Skills and Experience:
Demonstrated experience and knowledge of maternal and newborn health
Significant advisory, management and/or clinical experience and knowledge in the key technical areas of the role (KQMH, MPDSR, C/BEmONC, HMBs, srespectfulness, etc.)
Demonstrated ability to develop individual and institutional capacity
Expert group facilitation skills, and knowledge of guideline and curriculum design processes
In-depth knowledge of the Kenyan health system and fluency in Kiswahili
Strong analytical skills and the capacity to think strategically, including ability to produce high quality policy materials and advice for development implementation
Strong verbal communication skills and effective interpersonal style; ability to engage and build relationships at multiple levels
Attributes:
Commitment to reducing maternal and newborn mortality in Bungoma county
HOW TO APPLY:
Please send a copy of your CV and cover letter detailing how you fit the job description to Charlotte Langridge at c.langridge@options.co.uk.
Applicants are advised to apply as soon as possible. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, if a suitable candidate is found before the closing date applications will be closed.
