Operational Research Advisor At Médecins Sans Frontières

Médecins Sans Frontières Luxembourg – Operational Center Brussels, is looking for an

Operational Research Advisor (f/m)

To join the Operational Research Team LuxOR

1-year contract (with possible extension) – Full time position

Based in Luxembourg

BACKGROUND

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international humanitarian aid organisation that provides aid in more than 70 countries to populations in distress, to victims of natural or manmade disasters and to victims of armed conflicts, without discrimination and irrespective of race, religion, creed, or political affiliation.

The OCB Medical Department is a network of units, the Brussels Medical Unit (BRUMED in Brussels), the Southern African Medical Unit (SAMU) in Cape Town, the Luxembourg Operational Research unit (LuxOR) in Luxembourg, the Middle East Medical Unit (MEMU) in Beirut, and positions based around the world (Nairobi, Rio, Rome and Toronto). It is composed of polyvalent medical staff working in, and outside of the operational cells. The experts cover the following domains: anesthesia, antibiotic resistance, capacity building & mentoring for healthcare professionals, change management, chronic non-communicable diseases, critical care, data protection & data sharing, emergency medicine & toxicology, emergency preparedness, environmental health, epidemiology, general surgery & orthopedics, health promotion & anthropology, Hepatitis C, HIV, infection prevention & control, infectious diseases, knowledge management, laboratory, malaria & vector-borne diseases, medical data & health informatics, medical equipment, mental health, microbiology, nursing care, nutrition, operational research and documentation, pediatrics & adolescents health, pharmacy, primary healthcare, public health, sexual & reproductive health, tuberculosis, vaccination, survivors of torture and viral hemorrhagic fever & emerging infectious diseases. The department support is organized in resources deployed in thematic circles with specific time-bond deliverables.

Operational research and documentation are an integral part of the medical department activities. There are two relatively autonomous units supporting operational research and field epidemiologists. The LuxOR unit, based in Luxembourg with detached staff in Brussels, South Africa, Beirut, and Toronto, with core activities including operational research capacity building and a focus on research linked to the domains covered by the medical department (as mentioned above). The second unit is SAMU, based in Cape Town, South Africa which focuses on HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C and Tuberculosis. More information can be found on: https://msf.lu/en/operational-research/luxor and https://samumsf.org/en

FUNCTIONAL INTERACTION

• The LuxOR Director is the overall medical department reference person regarding guiding global policy and strategic aspects of operational research in OCB and provides overall guidance to team members.
• The Program Officer is responsible for team management, research system support, OR coordination, budget and LuxOR strategy. She is also responsible for linkage between LuxOR, Operations and the Medical Department in Brussels.
• The Operational Research Advisor will have a close interaction with team members who are based in Luxembourg, Beirut, London, Canada and South Africa. Continuous interaction with the field, operational cells and the medical department will be necessary to support operational research and documentation activities. The LuxOR team consist of advisors and mobile/flying implementation officers, there is no hierarchical link between positions. S/he will report to LuxOR Program Officer and Director.

MAIN ACTIVITIES/RESPONSABILITIES

The Operational Research Advisor will support operational research activities at field level. The main tasks are:

• Support the medical department and the operations to define and prioritize the operational research and documentation agenda.
• Review/draft operational research study protocols and provide technical and editorial support to comply with MSF Ethics Review Board (ERB) requirements for submission for ethical clearance through the appropriate channels.
• Provide editorial and manuscript writing support for publication, policy briefs, program descriptions, advocacy pieces,… according to an agreed platform of delegated responsibility between existing members of the Operational Research team.
• Support advanced data analysis and provide statistical support for ongoing research projects.
• Conduct field visits to selected projects to support research, discuss research agendas and provide general operational support if needed and relevant. Field trips can take up to 30 % of working time.
• Disseminate research findings through peer-reviewed publications and presentations at conferences/workshops and mentor other researchers for abstract and presentation development for Scientific Days/OR days.
• Be involved with setting up capacity building sessions on operational research (SORT-IT courses and others).
• In link with other members of the team, be directly responsible to regularly update and manage the yearly operational research and documentation agenda.
• Provide support to the pool of epidemiologists when needed.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

• Medical or para-medial profile with extensive field experience in MSF or another humanitarian NGO, including having worked in the context of health systems in a developing country.
• Experience in protocol writing and use of different quantitative study designs, including profound understanding of the concepts of bias and statistical inference.
• Strong evidence to show high capacity/potential in data analysis and use of statistical software (EpiInfo, DHIS2, R and STATA or similar).
• Capacity to quickly get familiar with the literature on different topics related to the operational priorities (environmental health, migration, mental health, sexual and reproductive health, outbreaks,…).
• Specific experience and/or interest in surgical care, intensive care, emergency care; neonatal and pediatrics health, and nutrition are an asset.
• Postgraduate training in Public Health with specific training and practical competence in epidemiology and medical statistics are an advantage.
• Understanding of qualitative and mixed-methods study designs are an asset.
• Very high level of spoken English, scientific writing skills and ability to use the editorial pen on manuscripts for publication and other descriptive documentation.
• Spoken French is essential while written French is an asset.

SOFT SKILLS REQUIREMENTS

• Share and support the MSF vision and values
• A high degree of work autonomy, team interaction and diplomacy are required to be able to interact at various levels within the department, in MSF and outside.
• Ability to adapt to changing circumstances, contexts, tasks, responsibilities and people.
• Willingness and ability to function in a team, transparent communication with colleagues, willingness to share work and experiences, give and ask support when needed.
• Solid scientific rigor and honesty, transparency, attention to detail.
• Ability to handle multiple projects or activities simultaneously, and to deliver quality outputs within deadlines.
• Proactivity and leadership capacity to drive operational research.
• Flexibility for regular travel (up to 30% of working time), possibly at short notice. Ability and willingness to spend time in often difficult and unstable contexts.

CONTRACT CONDITIONS AND BENEFITS

• Contract of 12 months with possibility of extension
• Based in Luxembourg
• Monthly gross salary: from 4575 € to 5550 € according to MSF experience
• Hospitalization, dental & optical care insurance, meal vouchers, transport allowance.
• Contract start date: asap