Summary
Date Posted: Monday, December 05, 2022 , Base Salary: Not Disclosed

JOB DETAILS:

Job Title : PhD Fellowship (3 years): Towards Health Systems Resilience in Africa: Harnessing experiences and enhancing capacity, frameworks and tools

At the Uganda National Institute of Public Health (UNIPH), a full-time temporary position a full-time temporary position as PhD fellow is available for a period of three (3) years from January 1, 2023.
The position is linked to the program Building stronger public health institutions and systems. This project is a collaboration between UNIPH, Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH), and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH) and is financed by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad). The PhD Fellow will be hosted by UNIPH and follow the PhD program at MakSPH. Research stay(s) in Norway may be included.
The PhD Fellow will work on a project to interrogate the applicability/robustness/utility of existing frameworks used to access epidemic preparedness and to assess the extent to which lessons from past epidemics have informed health systems strengthening, identify good practices and describe barriers to health systems learning in Africa.

More on the topic:
The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed long persisting economic social and health chasms globally and has resulted in accelerated efforts by governments to secure systems and populations against anticipated future global threats. For countries in Africa which have experienced frequent outbreaks amidst resource constraints, the pandemic had devastating impacts. Advances in health and technologies have led to improvements in reporting of disease outbreaks to WHO/AFRO since the launch of the IDSR strategy in 1998. In fact, epidemic trends for cholera reveal a decline in case fatality rate (CFR), suggesting improvement in detection and quality of response by the health sector.
However, the number of countries affected has by epidemics has increased. Persisting challenges to overcome include poor coordination, weak public health infrastructure, lack of trained workers and inadequate supply of diagnostic, treatment and prevention commodities. Moreover, experience from the Covid-19 pandemic has revealed that although high income countries have scored high on the IHR, JEE and GHSI, they also suffer the same plight of inadequate epidemic preparedness.

The experience gained from health systems shocks and their health and socioeconomic impacts highlights the importance of intentionally building health systems resilience. The African continent has historically faced and continues to face frequent epidemic outbreaks in Africa such as cholera, dysentery, malaria and hemorrhagic fevers (e.g. Ebola, Rift Valley fever, Crimean-Congo fever and yellow fever). With these experiences, Africa ought to have been the most prepared continent for epidemics. Moreover after action reviews to glean lessons and buttress systems ought to have strengthened the systems' ability to respond. A resilient health system is referred to as the degree of change a system can undergo while maintaining its functionality. In order to be resilient, a health system needs to be able to absorb shocks, adapt to them and ultimately transform in anticipation of future onslaughts. The health systems' inability to respond to Covid-19 was not unique to Africa, but cut across other settings which found themselves unprepared for the Covid-19 pandemic. This might to some extent be explained by the different health systems contexts, demographics and economy of countries. This might imply that frameworks to assess epidemic preparedness need to be calibrated for different contexts. There is therefore need to interrogate the veracity/ applicability/robustness of existing frameworks used to access epidemic preparedness given the differences in contexts and demographics across countries. Furthermore, experience gained from health systems shocks and their health and socioeconomic impacts underscores the need to build health systems resilience deliberately and underpin it with public health measures. There is therefore a need to assess the extent to which lessons learned from previous epidemics have been harnessed to strengthen health systems over the past decades, identify good practices and describe barriers to health systems learning in Africa and beyond.

Work tasks:
The PhD fellow will follow the PhD program at MakSPH. He/she will undertake research to:
• Examine the robustness/utility/reliability of existing frameworks for assessing health systems preparedness (including identifying contextual indicators that could be added or comparing frameworks to see best fit)
• Map the level of systems strengthening efforts gleaned from previous epidemics and their adoptions (to what extent do existing systems work eg task forces, surveillance systems existing, after action reviews, where is the focus of government efforts in terms of absorbing, adapting, transforming)
• Identify constrains in capacity building for systems resilience in terms of (Knowledge, Uncertainty, Interdependence and legitimacy (Biddle et al 2020)
• Curate good practices for systems strengthening that could be tested and taken to scale in Africa and beyond
• Propose innovations on how to enhance resilience

Qualifications and personal qualities:
• This call for candidates is open to all Ugandans..
• The successful applicant must be granted a three-year study leave from his or her current position to be employed in this position.
• The successful applicant must have a masters' degree with a minimum overall score of B. The degree must be in public health, epidemiology, or other of similar relevance for the implementation science of the project.
• At least 3 years research experience with fieldwork in public health or other of similar relevance for the implementation science of the project is desirable.
• Experience of project leadership with fieldwork in the public health sector in similar settings as Uganda is desirable.
• At least 3 years experience working with district health systems structures will be an added bonus
• The applicant must have good communication skills both orally and in writing and be fluent in written and oral English. Peer reviewed publications will be an advantage.
• Personal characteristics such as abilities to work independently and collaborate in a team will be emphasized. The applicant must be flexible, solution-oriented and with a strong drive to get things done. To succeed as a PhD fellow, the candidate must have excellent organizational and time-management skills, be motivated and responsible, and have a great work capacity, commitment and enthusiasm for research and dissemination.


We can offer:
• A good and challenging international work environment in a team striving for scientific excellence.
• Statutory social security benefits as listed under the NSSF

Your application must include:
• A brief letter of application stating your motivation for the position, why you are applying and why this position is perfect for you.
• An overview of your education and work experience (CV).
• Copies of diplomas and relevant certificates.
• A list of publications and academic work (max 10).
• Two references (name, contact information, and a brief description of their work- relation to you).


Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: 36

Level of Education: Associate Degree

Job application procedure

Submit online applications to jadikini@musph.ac.ug  and hard copies to the School of Public Health, Ground floor. Managers Office. Ask for Ms Josephine Adikini.
Deadline for applications is 2 weeks from publication of this advert.
Further information about the position can be obtained from: Dr. Suzanne Kiwanuka, MakSPH (phone: +256 772886377or e-mail: skiwanuka@musph.ac.ug ) or Dr. Alex Riolexus Ario, UNIPH (phone: +256772363348 or e-mail: riolexus@uniph.go.ug ) The workforce shall reflect the diversity of Ugandan society to the greatest extent possible. People with minority backgrounds and people with disabilities are encouraged to apply for the position. UNIPH applies the principle of public access to information when recruiting staff for academic positions.


All Jobs

QUICK ALERT SUBSCRIPTION