Research Coordinator for Operational Research on Child Wasting – Ethiopian Public Health Association

Research and Development

Ethiopian Public Health Association

Ethiopian Public Health Association (EPHA)

The Ethiopian Public Health Association (EPHA) is a health professionals association established in 1991 G.C. that envisions the attainment of an optimal standard of health for the people of Ethiopia. It promotes better health services to the public and high professional standards through advocacy, professional competence, relevant policies, and effective networking. EPHA is committed to improve the health and living status of the people of Ethiopia through the dedicated and active involvement of the organization and its members and through collaboration with stakeholders.

EPHA is an association of public health professionals of varying categories and levels of training. EPHA members are distributed all over the country occupying positions at different levels of health care and management from woreda (district) health office and health facilities to the level of a minister. EPHA members are also in private, government and non-government organizations as are its Executive Board members EPHA is among the strongest professional associations in Ethiopia with a current membership of more than 3000. EPHA has its head quarter in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and chapters in different regions of the country. The Association is working closely with its partners and collaborators to facilitate and accelerate activities on the country’s priority public health issues and has years of experience and success in implementing national as well as continental projects.. EPHA has good working relationship with governmental and non-governmental organizations, and universities within the country and abroad.

Vacancy for Research Assistant for the Coordination of
“Research to improve the screening for wasting and the identification and treatment of wasted children (R-SWITCH) in Ethiopia”.
Background:
EPHA is currently running a project with a financial support from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation through UNICEF and in collaboration with the implementing and research partner IFPRI, the global research lead. The purpose is to identify and test different approaches to detect and treat wasting at different levels of the system (household, community, facility), thereby increasing the proportion of children wasted who receive timely and appropriate treatment. The research will be conducted in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Nigeria. Models for the scaling-up of simplified approaches that can achieve a higher treatment services coverage will be developed in the three countries. EPHA has successfully completed a one-year planning and piloting phase and is now ready to launch a two years research project in Oromia region in Kersa and Jaldessa districts. To this effect, EPHA now wants to recruit a qualified and competent nutritionist in line with the following details.
Job Purpose 
To assist and coordinate the implantation research on simplified approaches to prevent and manage child wasting under the guidance of EPHA and PIs from EPHA and IFPRI. 
Key Responsibilities /Duties/Tasks 
Planning and coordination 
In close consultation with the principal investigator the research assistant will be involved in the Implementation Phase (Phase 2) of the research project
  • Briefly, the project coordinator will accomplish the following activities:
  • Coordinate the implementation of the impact evaluation study which will evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention model on wasting-related outcomes.
  • Coordinate the implementation of the implementation research.
  • Coordinate the implementation of the cost study. 
  • Assist in the coordination and dissemination workshop in country.
  • Ensure that the research plans are moving as planned. 
  • Ensure that logistics, procurement, and policies are implemented as per the standards of EPHA and the donor organization
  • Keeps financial and technical data and prepares reports for submission to UNICEF on a quarterly basis
Stakeholder Management  
  • Build and maintain a collaborative relationship with those who will be involved in the operation research
  • Coordinate and network relationships
  • Advocate and liaise closely with stakeholders and partners at the national, regional, zonal, woreda and community level
Capacity Development 
  • Assist relevant stakeholder engagement to address training on the Prevention of Sexual exploitation and abuse, data collection
  • Assists the PI in capacity building to data collectors and other partners as needed.
M and E
  • Monitor and report to the RPD and the PI that all activities of the research are smoothly moving as planned.
  • Ensure monitoring and data collection tools and devices are readily available for data collectors at project sites
  • Asist IRB approval and consents from MOH, RHBs and study districts are obtained before data collection.
  • Work with the IT manager of EPHA that data collection is secure, centrally stored and available for analysis.
  • Follow the data sharing policy of EPHA
  • Assist the PI in data entry, cleaning, analysis, and report writing
  • Collect feedback on a preliminary research report from relevant stakeholders and address issues after consultation with PIs and RPD
  • Ensure final research report is submitted to EPHA and UNICEF Ethiopia 
Financial Management 
  • Advise the EPHA finance management team to ensure that the financial utilization is in accordance of plan and is in compliance of donors and EPHA 
Job Type: Contractual for 1 year with a possibility of extension.
Number required: 1
Reports to: Research and Publication Director (RPD) of EPHA
Application Deadline: Within 7 days of posting of this job announcement
Job Requirements 
Academic and professional qualification
  • Masters in nutrition, public health, nutritional epidemiology or related field. Female applicants are Encouraged.
Work Experience
  • At least 3 years of professional experience in nutrition, public health, or related fields at the international level.
  • Experience conducting high-quality research in Ethiopia
  • Experience conducting research on child undernutrition and preferrable experience conducting research on wasting.
  • Experience sensitizing communities and other stakeholders about research activities.
  • Experience developing reports, policy briefs and journal articles.
  • Excellent communications skills.
  • Excellent written and spoken English.
Preferred experiences
  • Experience conducting impact evaluations using a randomized controlled design.
  • Experience conducting implementation research.
  • Experience conducting cost studies
Required skills
  • ]Use of digital methods of data collection
  • Use of advanced software in data collection
  • Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
  • Excellent facilitation and presentation skills
  • High proficiency in English language (As the project sites are in Oromia, knowing Afaan Oromo is an added value).

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