The Ministry of Health (MOH) Cooperative Agreement supported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) aims at supporting the Strengthening of the Ministry’s capacity to provide Leadership to the National HIV/AIDS Response through coordination, policy development, mentorship and training. MOH seeks to recruit suitably qualified and experienced persons to be appointed to the under listed positions under this project.
Location: Zambia National Public Health Institute
Reports to: Director- Surveilance and Disease Intelligence
Job Purpose
To assist with implementation and expansion of wastewater environmental surveillance (ES) for pathogens of public health importance in Zambia.
Responsibilities/Principal Accountabilities
• Develop subject matter expertise in wastewater ES methodology to lead expansion of ES in Zambia to include additional sites and pathogens.
• The immediate focus will be on instituting ES for SARS-CoV-2 Coordinate and develop partnerships with MOH, provincial, and district public health departments, laboratories, sanitation agencies and other partners (e.g.. academia, international donors).
• Design and implement standard operating procedures (SOPs) for wastewater ES data management and reporting methods
• Conduct epidemiologic data analysis, management, and lead development of reports and visualizations of wastewater surveillance data including creation/ updating of dashboards, as appropriate.
• Link ES datasets to other sources of data, manage spatial datasets and perform spatial analyses.
• Review and assist in interpretation of wastewater ES data to inform epidemiologic and programmatic public health decisions related to polio vinuses or any other pathogens added to the wastewater surveillance profile in future.
• Coordinate capacity building through training and supportive supervision to enhance wastewater ES in Zambia.
• Conduct data quality improvement activities and surveillance system analyses to improve wastewater ES in Zambia.
• Conduct operational research and epidemiologic studies to generate evidence from wastewater ES for public health planning and policy
• Perform other duties as assigned by Director of Surveillance and Disease Inteligence.
Qualifications
• Grade Twelve (12) School Certificate with Five (5) Credits or better including Mathematics and English Bachelor’s Degree in in Epidemiclogy, Public Health Environmental Health or related health field
• A master’s level degree or PhD in epidemiology, public health, environmental health or related health field
Experience and skills
• Minimum of two (2) years’ work experience in a public health related field Familiarity with ES methods and techniques Intermediate to advanced ability using
• 1 statistical software (e.g.. STATA, SAS, R. SPSS, etc.)
• Intermediate to advanced ability using 1 geospatial analysis software (e.g.qGIS, ArcGIS, etc.)
• Proven knowledge and skills in epidemiology, surveillance methods, and data reporting, management, and analysis
• Understanding of the principles of biostatistics, geographic information systems, spatial analyses, and data visualization.
• Experience in capacity building on surveillance and epidemiological methods
• Strong interpersonal skills demonstrated by experience working well on teams within varying areas of expertise to accomplish project objectives
• Comfort working independently with strong initiative and problem-solving abilities
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment, multi-tasking prioritizing work to meet deadlines, and demonstrated ability to work with minimal supervision
• Demonstrated ability to effectively communicate both orally and in writing, including complicated epidemiological information to non-technical audiences
•Experience in data entry, management, cleaning and analyzing data.
• Experience in reporting and visualization of public health or epidemiologic data.
• Basic knowledge and experience with statistical software
• Basic knowledge of GIS software such as ArcGIS or QGIS required
• Familiarity with environmental surveillance techniques preferred.
All interested persons meeting the above qualifications and experience should send their written applications to the undersigned with certified copies of their National Registration Card, academic and professional qualifications and a detailed Curriculum Vitae with three references including their contact numbers.
Applicants are advised to clearly indicate the positions they are applying for on the envelope or subject area in the case of electronic applications email to info@moh.gov.zm.
The closing date for receipt of applications is Wednesday, 18 January, 2023. Only short- listed candidates will be contacted.
The Permanent Secretary-(Technical Services) Ministry of Health
Ndeke House
P.O. Box 30205
LUSAKA
