Consultancy to support of the Global HIV Drug Resistance (HIVDR) Surveillance and Monitoring Strategy (2016/HTM/HIV/017)

WHO
Consultancy to support of the Global HIV Drug Resistance (HIVDR) Surveillance and Monitoring Strategy (2016/HTM/HIV/017) Request for proposal

Reference: 2016/HTM/HIV/017
Beneficiary countries or territories: Switzerland
Published on: 12-Sep-2016
Deadline on: 28-Sep-2016 17:00 (GMT 2.00)

Description

Resistance to HIV medications has the potential to threaten the tremendous preventive and treatment successes of ART.  HIV drug resistance (HIVDR) emerges when HIV replicates in the presence of antiretroviral drugs.  If HIVDR becomes widespread, drugs currently used to treat HIV infection may become ineffective.  The consequences of HIVDR include treatment failure, the need to start costlier second- and third- line treatments, increased health costs associated with these, the spread of drug resistant HIV, and the need to develop new anti-HIV drugs. To date, levels of HIVDR in countries scaling up ART remain manageable, but they are slowly increasing.  For example, in East Africa, resistance rates above 10% to non-nucleoside drugs (such as nevirapine and efavirenz) were recently reported.

                                                               

WHO is the lead global normative agency with responsibility to guide countries about measures to prevent, monitor, and contain HIVDR.  WHO and its partner organizations and experts of the HIVResNet group developed a global strategy for the surveillance and monitoring of HIVDR in 2004, that was further updated in 2012. The strategy generates data on the emergence and transmission of HIVDR and equips countries with information to select first and second line antiretroviral therapy regimens. 

Through concept notes and guidance, WHO has provided technical support to countries on how to conduct surveillance activities.  WHO regularly reports on the prevalence of resistance (see http://www.who.int/hiv/topics/drugresistance/en/.).

The HIVDR team is developing the WHO HIVDR Surveillance Report, which will be published at the end of 2016. This report requires the collection of up to date HIVDR and EWI survey data from countries with substantial follow up for the purposes of data cleaning and analysis.

Within the HIV Department, the contractor will work with the Treatment and Care Unit (TAC) Unit.

 

Main Tasks:

Under the direction of the Medical Officer of HIV Drug Resistance in the TAC Unit, HIV Department, the consultant will do the following tasks:

 

1.      Provide inputs and guidance to further develop the database on Drug Resistance in collaboration with the IT and data management consultants.

2.      To assure quality of the sequence from HIVDR country surveys in fasta file format, produce quality assurance reports and upload those to WHO HIVDR database or SharePoint

3.      To support WHO in the preparation of a meeting on use of programmatic data to inform HIVDR surveillance.

4.      To provide remote technical expertise to up to 15 countries requiring support for implementation of WHO HIVDR surveys.

5.      To support WHO in the preparation of the HIVDR Global Report

6.      Review and provide comments and inputs to the draft Global Action Plan (GAP).

7.      Assist WHO in the preparation of the expert meeting on “response to high level of pre-treatment HIVDR”.

 

Key requirements for this consultancy:

 

Essential Education:

Master Degree in Epidemiology, Virology and/or Medical Degree

 

Desirable:

Degree in Public Health

 

Essential Work experience:

At least 10 years working experience in the field of HIV virology and at least five years in HIV drug resistance surveillance

 

Desirable:

Documented experience in writing drug surveillance reports and/or with DR databases.

                               

The initial contract duration under this RFP is for 12 months but could be extended to another 12 months depending on the performance and funding availability.

 

Submission of proposals:

No later than 21 September 2016, 17:00 (CET), the bidder shall complete and return by either email or hard copy to WHO (only when this step is completed the bidder is regarded as a prospective bidder):

                                                                                                                  

  1. “2016HTMHIV017_3_RFP Confidentiality Undertaking (TAC DR)” form completed/signed.
  2. “2016HTMHIV017_4_RFP Acknowledgement Form (TAC DR)” form completed/signed as confirmation of the bidder's intention to submit a bona fide proposal and designate its representative to whom communications may be directed, including any addenda.

 

No later than 28 September 2016, 17:00 (CET), the bidder shall complete and return by either email or hard copy to WHO (only when this step is completed the bidder is regarded as a prospective bidder):

                                                                                                                  

  1. Covering letter signed by the bidder or the respective authority when the bidder is not an individual.
  2. Proposal (including, but not restricted to, technical and financial documents).
  3. “2016HTMHIV017_5_ RFP Acceptance Form (TAC DR)” form completed/signed.
  4. “2016HTMHIV017_6_RFP Completeness Form (TAC DR)” form completed/signed.

A prospective bidder requiring any clarification on technical, contractual or commercial matters may notify WHO via email at the following address no later than 21 September 2016, 17:00 CET.

 

  • Email for submissions of forms and/or proposal: pdifin@who.int (use subject: Bid Ref 2016HTMHIV017)
  • Mailing address for submission of proposal:

World Health Organization

­­­­Mr. Jerome Peron

HQ/HIV, PDI/FIN, D45034

Bid Ref: 2016HTMHIV017

20, Avenue Appia

CH-1211 Geneva 27        

 

Refer to attached documents for additional information.