STC Primary health care and human resources for health
BACKGROUND
Universal health coverage (UHC) means that all people in a society are able to obtain the health services that they need, of high-quality, without fear that the cost of paying for these services at the time of use will push them into severe financial hardship. UHC has become a major policy priority in many countries, and a significant and growing focus of attention at the international level, forming one of the targets of Sustainable Development Goal 3.
Cambodia has made significant progress in recent decades towards UHC, however there remain key gaps in the range of services and level of utilization at primary care level, in the quality of care, in the ability to monitor the performance of service delivery, and in community involvement in mobilizing demand and accountability. In light of these challenges, WHO Cambodia is undertaking a number of efforts to support the country to move towards UHC, including in primary care and human resources for health, to which this STC will significantly contribute.
This programme will build on a number of policy and implementation initiatives recently launched in Cambodia. The Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) launched the National Social Protection Policy Framework 2016-2025 to expand social assistance and social protection including health insurance. The Ministry of Health launched the Health Strategic Plan (2016-2020) to build on MDG era progress by moving towards a vision of UHC through expanding primary care services, improving service quality and addressing inequities, including expanding access in rural areas. Moreover, a number of initiatives to raise quality of care have been developed, including laws to regulate healthcare practitioners and accredit facilities, a National Policy for Quality and Safety in Health and a Master Plan for Quality Improvement in Health, 2017-2021, and indicators to foster competition to improve quality among health centres.
PURPOSE/SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE OF THE ACTIVITY
The purpose of the STC is to provide technical assistance to Ministry of Health, Cambodia in accelerating progress towards implementation of the primary health care (PHC) approach, with a focus on human resources of health and the achievement of universal health coverage (UHC) in Cambodia.
The Health Systems Development (HSD) team in the WHO Representative Office in Cambodia works closely with the government of Cambodia and development partners to strengthen health systems and advance UHC in the country. The STC will provide further support to promote the primary health care approach in Cambodia, in line with regional priorities agreed by Member States at the 70th WHO Regional Committee Meeting of the Western Pacific. The STC will also support work to strengthen human resources for health, supporting the Working For Health initiative. In the course of this work, the STC will undertake project management, provide technical support, facilitate policy dialogue and technical discussion, and generate and communicate evidence and information to support policy making. The specific areas of focus include, but are not limited to, assessment of service delivery bottlenecks in primary care; analysis of service delivery coverage; design of models to expand package of services, including for noncommunicable diseases; monitoring of coverage and quality of care; analysis of community outreach; human resources for health (including health labour market analysis and review of the Health Workforce Development Plan) and development of policy briefs in these areas. The STC will both work at national level with the Ministry of Health but also work at implementation sites. The STC will work under the direct supervision of the HSD Team Leader with overall guidance by the WHO Representative and Head of Office in Cambodia.
This consultancy is open only to individuals. Applications from firms will not be reviewed.
DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES TO BE CARRIED OUT
In collaboration with Ministry of Health and Provincial Health Departments in implementation sites, and under the direct supervision of Health System Development Team Leader, WHO, the consultant will undertake following tasks:
- Provide technical support to:
- expansion of coverage of essential services provided at primary care
- integration of NCD interventions into primary care
- monitoring quality and coverage of service delivery
- enhancement of community engagement to improve health protection, health promotion and service utilization
- health labour market analysis
- review of the Health Workforce Development plan and development of the new Health Workforce Development Plan
- Support documentation and strategic communication on primary health care, human resources for health and other health systems efforts to support the translation of evidence into policy and practice.
- Provide project management of WHO supported primary care and human resources for health efforts.
- Provide additional support to HSD Team Leader and HSD Team as required.
- Submit a technical report at the end of the consultancy.
METHODS TO CARRY OUT THE ACTIVITY
- Desk review of materials.
- Collaborative work with Ministry of Health representatives, and those of other entities of the Royal Government of Cambodia.
- Data collection activities from individuals and health practitioners as required.
- Data analysis using Excel and other software as required.
- Documentation of analyses in reports and policy briefs.
DELIVERABLES
- Complete draft of report on primary health care renewal in Cambodia
- Policy briefs
- Monthly progress reports
- Final report
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE
EDUCATION
Essential:
University degree in a clinical health science and experience in delivering healthcare.
Desirable:
Post-graduate degree in public health, international development and/or related fields or equivalent work experience
EXPERIENCE
Essential:
At least 5 years of experience in the field of health economics, health financing, human resources for health, health systems research, service delivery and/or health systems strengthening with strong skills in qualitative (policy) and quantitative analysis.
Desirable:
Previous experience working for WHO. Experience working in public health in a low- or middle-income country. Experience working on human resources for health and/or primary health care. Experience working in Cambodia.
TECHNICAL SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE
Essential:
- Knowledge on health systems strengthening, primary health care and concepts of UHC.
- Good writing, presentation and communication skills are essential.
- Skills to analyse and present quantitative and qualitative data.
LANGUAGES
Fluency in English (writing, reading and speaking) is essential.
COMPETENCIES
- Communicating in a credible and effective way
- Producing results.
- Moving forward in a changing environment.
- Fostering integration and teamwork.
- Knowing and managing yourself
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
The contract is composed of 120 days from 13 January to 12 July 2020. The consultant will be based in Phnom Penh and will be provided with a desk at the WHO office. Travel to other parts of Cambodia are possible for data collection. Access to WHO resources including journals, relevant internal documents, databases, and software will be made available, as necessary and appropriate. A WHO email account will be provided, valid for the period of the contract. The consultant will be required to provide their own laptop.
APPLICATIONS
Qualified and interested specialists should submit their CV to the Supply Officer through WP RO UNGM at wproungm@who.int by 17th November 2019. This consultancy is open to individual consultants only.
The CV should include the consultant’s proposed daily rate.
Please use Tender Notice No. 99752 as subject to all submission. Only successful candidates will be contacted.