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TITLE: Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Advisor
LOCATION: Buchanan City, Liberia
REPORTS TO: Country Director, Liberia
LENGTH: 12 months, with potential to extend based on program need, performance, and funding availability
PROGRAM BACKGROUND
Since 2015, Americares Liberia has been implementing a health system strengthening program in Grand Bassa County, with a focus on improving reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health (RMNCH) services delivery at health facilities. This program focuses on building the capacity of health facilities and health workers to provide improved integrated quality RMNCH services, which result in contributing to the lowering maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. In addition, Americares works closely with communities to increase health care service utilization and to improve links between health facilities and communities, with a particular focus on key influencers such community leaders. Americares approach includes making sure that evidence-based global and MOH standards and protocols are in place and followed by the MOH staff, conducting theoretical and clinical trainings, providing mentoring, coaching and ongoing technical support to staff, as well as provision of medical supplies and commodities, and facility upgrades. Americares programs are run in close collaboration with the Grand Bassa County Health team and focus on three health facilities in Grand Bassa County: John Logan Town Service Delivery Point, Zondo Clinic, and Liberia Government Hospital in Buchanan.
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POSITION SUMMARY
The RMNCH Advisor will serve as the in-country subject matter expert on RMNCH activities, while working collaboratively with the Country Director (CD), Finance and Operations Manager, and Headquarters (HQ) staff. The Advisor will be directly responsible for planning, implementing, and reporting on Americares RMNCH programming in Grand Bassa County. The Advisor will liaise with partners and stakeholders, including the national-level Ministry of Health and the County Health Team, to ensure aligned programming, approvals, and clear communication, and attend relevant technical meetings and be a member of relevant technical working groups, as agreed up with the CD. Additionally, the Advisor will directly implement competency-based trainings and provide supportive supervision for facility-based staff on RMNCH topics. The Advisor will forecast expenditure needs and will responsibly manage funds for his/her program in the Buchanan office. S/he will track key indicators and collect the RMNCH data that the program requires and analyze relevant data to inform programming. ​
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The responsibilities of the RMNCH Advisor include, but are not limited to, the following:
Program Development
- ​In collaboration and coordination with Liberia Country Director and Americares headquarters teams, contribute to the development of RMNCH program designAssist with funding proposals as requested.
- ​Align Americares programming with Ministry of Health priorities and objectives.
- ​Liaise with local stakeholders, including national-level MOH and the CHT, to secure program approvals and to facilitate a collegial working relationship.
- ​Participate as an active member and contributor in technical working groups and meetings.
Project Implementation
- ​Develop thorough workplans for project implementation that align with program strategy
- ​In consultation with Americares HQ and in line with global best practices and Ministry of Health policies in Liberia, utilize and adapt as needed already developed, competency-based training curricula and job aids; develop syllabus/training plan for training of midwives and nurses at target facilities
- ​Ensure that all clinical standards and protocols are in place and reflect best global evidence and MOH policies, and that staff are oriented to these and understand how they should be implemented in practice
- ​Initial activities with focus on training facility staff on lifesaving care topics including: prevention and management of post-partum hemorrhage, prevention and management of pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, correct use of partographs in labor to guide referral, resuscitation of asphyxiated newborns, and specific management of labor complications such as a breech or twin delivery
- ​Institute on-going refresher training and drills for sustainability; assign local staff the task of ensuring these take place at agreed upon times and intervals. Orient new staff to these refresher drills.
- ​Lead additional training and standards such as: ensuring exclusive breastfeeding, care of low birth-weight neonates, ensuring correct infection prevention practices and promotion of suitable family planning methods for post-partum women
- ​Provide facility staff training on child survival interventions such as: routine immunization; exclusive breast feeding; and identification and prevention of malnutrition, diarrheal disease, acute respiratory infections and malaria
- ​Train facility-based health workers on providing respectful care to pregnant women and mothers, with an understanding of the needs and support of adolescents
- ​Provide supportive supervision, ongoing mentorship, on-the-job coaching, and technical support to midwives and nurses in target facilities, including strengthening the organizational, management and communication skills of senior staff
- ​Provide training and other technical support to community program – to be defined
Project Monitoring and Reporting
- ​In consultation with Americares HQ and in line with Ministry of Health standards and tools, utilize WHO or other best practice quality improvement monitoring tools and ensure the implementation of quality improvement monitoring tools at target health facilities
- ​Ensure accurate data management, organization, and reporting
- ​Conduct regular monitoring visits to target health facilities to monitor quality and performances
- ​Document and share best practices, challenges and lessons to internal audience and partners and stakeholders, including drafting reports, publications, posters, or preparing presentations for technical meetings. Use information to inform adjustments to program implementation as needed.
- ​Produce and submit high quality monthly, quarterly, semi-annual and annual programmatic reports for internal and external uses
- ​With support from Americares Country Director and HQ staff, including program staff, monitoring and evaluation staff, and MNCH technical staff, develop indicators to track program progress
- ​Document and maintain an inventory of successful tools and approaches for RMNCH
Stakeholder Mobilization
- ​Liaise with partners and stakeholders to strengthen coordination and collaboration
- ​Participate in behavior change communication or community program support, especially focused on technical content and messaging, as assigned; may include radio programs or other community outreach
General Support
- ​Manage finance forecasting and reporting for project expenses
- ​Liaise with Americares supply chain staff to ensure appropriate RMNCH GIK support to target facilities
- ​Perform other tasks as needed
This post involves several periods of moderate physical effort, working in the hospital wards and training facility-based staff in Buchanan and in remote areas. This position also requires dealing with distressed relatives, caring for women and families who have suffered a bereavement, caring for women and newborns who are extremely unwell and caring for women at a particularly emotionally vulnerable period in their lives.
QUALIFICATIONS
- ​First Degree in nursing, midwifery, or related field; Master Degree is preferable
- ​License to practice midwifery in Liberia
- ​Experience adapting curricula and conducting RMNCH trainings with INGOs or in training institutions with MOH (such as experience as a midwifery tutor)
- ​10+ years of midwifery clinical experience, including training and service provision in NGOs and hospitals
- ​Community level experience and experience mentoring and tutoring an advantage
- ​Strong communication skills
