Advisor- TB Epidemiologist and Government Liaison
Job Highlight
The Advisor positioned at Central TB Division, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Government of India will serve as the technical lead for TB epidemiology and data-driven interventions for the FCSDS-Tribal TB Initiative and Stop TB Partnership’s liaison with NTEP both at National and State level.
About The Group
From Geneva, UNOPS facilitates the achievement of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), working with governments, other United Nations (UN) agencies and partners by providing quality servces, integrated solutions and management support through strategic, cost-effective and results-oriented approches. This includes supporting platforms and hosting high-profile, flagship initiatives and funds focusing on health, nutrition, water and sanitation, sustainable cities, environment, energy, climate and trade. UNOPS is a recognized resource for the UN system in Geneva – from fund management and oversight and advisory services, to providing hosting solutions to a range of global initiatives, as well as operational support to partner organizations.
Role Purpose
The role will involve close collaboration with the Central TB Division (CTD), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and other national stakeholders to support evidence-based planning, monitoring, and innovation in TB control in India. The incumbent will report to the Deputy Executive Director Stop TB partnership
Functions / Key Results Expected
Under the guidance and supervision of the Deputy Executive Director Stop TB partnership, the Advisor will :
- Lead technical stewardship to TB Epidemiological research activities including ‘TB impact measurements’.
- provide capacity building of project implementing partners
- provide guidance and feedback through supervision and monitoring of implementation
- Oversee technical inputs & guidance for planning and designing interventions
- assist in preparatory activities for the introduction of newer screening & diagnostic tools in the project whenever available
- monitor the project with technical & financial performance indicators
- conduct data analysis and provide interpretation for use within the organization for various purposes, including advocacy, donor reporting, scientific meetings, proposal developments, resource mobilization, etc.
- review real-time data, monthly & quarterly & annual report (narrative / qualitative & quantitative) of the projects
- generate research questions, write research proposals (if needed), write scientific briefs out of knowledge generated from the projects and develop manuscript for publication
- Oversee strategic vision & technical support to NTEP in designing interventions to prevent Tuberculosis in India
- foster innovation to improve functionality of Ni-Kshay & TB surveillance system
- Coordinate technical support to CTD/NTEP, ICMR and development partners to introduce newer technologies, innovations and initiatives including but not restricted to differentiated TB care, pulmonary rehabilitation, Post TB lung disease management, subnational certification (incidence and mortality estimation), vaccines, TPT, AIC, etc.
Deliverables:
- Technical documents on TB epidemiological studies and relevant reports.
- Technical reports on supporting validations, trials, demonstration scale-up of newer screening, diagnostics, treatment and prevention tools, including vaccines
- Technical Reports on supporting NTEP for estimation of TB disease burden & health care service utilization trends, impact (developing & updating protocol, execution mechanisms, tools, capacity building, supervision, monitoring, evaluation and dissemination)
- Collaborative models of implementation for differentiated TB care, pulmonary rehabilitation, Post TB lung disease management, subnational certification (incidence and mortality estimation), genomics, vaccines, TPT, AIC.
- Reports on Technical capacity building of implementing partners & States/UTs under donor-assisted & domestic projects to scale-up TB case finding in vulnerable communities and geographies
- Results framework for the projects & surveillance systems in vulnerable communities and geography
- Assessment of current functionalities of India’s digital recording reporting system of NTEP (Ni-Kshay) & plan for further augmentation
Duration of Assignment
The consultancy is for 12 months.
Education Requirements
Required
- Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in Public Health, Epidemiology, Biostatistics, or related field or related fields with 9 years of relevant experience OR
- Master’s degree (or equivalent) in Public Health, Epidemiology, Biostatistics, or related field with 7 years of relevant experience is required
Required
Experience Requirements
- Minimum 7 years of of progressive professional experience in TB epidemiology and research
- Proven experience in TB program implementation, epidemiological analysis, and digital health systems.
- Strong understanding of NTEP monitoring frameworks and indicators.
- Experience working with government health systems, especially CTD, is essential.