Epidemiology/Operational Research Advisor At Médecins Sans Frontières

Médecins Sans Frontières, founded in 1971, is an international medical humanitarian organization that provides emergency medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters or exclusion from health care. Our teams are made up of tens of thousands of medical professionals, logistics, administrative and various other professions, all guided by our medical ethics and our principles of impartiality, independence and neutrality.

MSF WaCA, created in 2019, is the first MSF headquarters in Africa, and responds to the desire to reinvent the MSF movement after 50 years of humanitarian actions in the world, for more access to care, more reactivity and proactivity for greater medical coverage of affected populations in the world.

Why join us?

You are preparing to become a member of the MSF family, with over 50 years of emergency medical action that earned the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999.

We are an inclusive organization that considers social and professional well-being a right for all and provides an environment that takes into account the diversity of each member.

MSF WaCA claims an African anchorage that considers the local expertise with which it contributes in the implementation of its activities and makes each member, a key actor of the new dynamics of the humanitarian action in the world.

We Are Looking for: EPIDEMIOLOGY/OPERATIONAL RESEARCH ADVISOR

Department: Medical

Direct Manager: Head of Epidemiology

Functional Manager: Head of Epidemiology

Working %: 100%

Position Based in: Abidjan

Mobility: All WaCA’s Interventions Zones

Type of Contract: Fixed-Term Renewable

Position to be filled: As Soon As Possible

Objectives

As a front-line medical humanitarian organization providing direct patient care in response to epidemics, natural disasters and health crises, MSF-WaCA often has a unique opportunity to pilot and document new intervention and control strategies. Therefore, it is MSF-WaCA’s duty to rigorously document research so that it can be shared with others and influence changes in policy and practice in humanitarian medicine.

In terms of structure, operational research is under the responsibility of the Deputy Medical Director and the technical supervision of the MSF-WaCA epidemiological manager. It is conducted in line with MSF-WaCA’s strategic plan and medical strategy, and in collaboration with the Innovation Unit and the Digital Transformation Department.

The position of Epidemiology and Operational Research Advisor aims to support research activities in the field, capitalize on interventions and disseminate them both internally and externally. The support to be provided includes methodological support, field implementation, documentation (report writing) and dissemination of results (scientific publication).

Main responsibilities

Operational research

Support in defining and prioritizing operational research projects.
Draft study and operational research protocols and provide support in their implementation.
Comply with the requirements of the MSF ethics committee (ERB) and national committees by using the appropriate channels for the submission of an ethical authorization request.
Monitor the progress of ongoing studies and investigations and ensure compliance with protocol.
Analyze research data to ensure translation into information for programmatic decision-making.
Provide support in writing manuscripts for publication in scientific journals.
Ensure publication of scientific articles in journals to increase MSF WaCA’s visibility in the scientific community.
Implement advanced methods of medical data analysis and disseminate these analyses through the appropriate channels within MSF WaCA.
In liaison with other team members, be directly responsible for the regular updating of operational research and documentation projects.
Write policy briefs based on research evidence, program descriptions to inform or provoke thought, guide advocacy within MSF WaCA.
In collaboration with the Head of Innovation, field-test innovative tools or strategies and document their relevance; if necessary, document the improvements required to achieve the desired results.

Capitalization and documentation

Conduct secondary analyses, including meta-analyses, and disseminate results internally or externally (scientific publication) after technical and strategic validation by the Epidemiology Manager and Deputy Medical Director respectively.
Coordinate project capitalization and ensure dissemination of lessons learned.
Visit MSF WaCA projects to discuss operational research opportunities and provide operational support.

Support for junior or national epidemiologists

On delegation from the Head of Epidemiology, support junior epidemiologists involved with MSF WaCA.
Participates in training activities for the new generation of field epidemiologists capable of responding to health emergencies in line with the profile of the MSF movement and partner ministries of health.
Accompanies junior epidemiologists in methodological terms for the drafting of protocols for surveys.
Assists junior epidemiologists in implementing survey data analysis.

Job requirements

Education

Medical or paramedical profile with at least a Master’s degree in epidemiology or public health (in the latter case, additional training in advanced statistics or research methodology will be required).
PhD in epidemiology or biostatistics or public health on a topic related to tropical medicine (asset)
Training or certificate in clinical research (an asset)

Competencies

Strong skills in data analysis and use of statistical software (R, Python or similar)
Ability to conduct meta-analyses

Professional experience required

Experience in protocol writing, including methodological aspects such as design selection, sample size calculation and statistical analysis plan development.
Proven experience in writing and publishing scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals (list of scientific publications will be requested)
Field experience as a research assistant or monitor
Experience in conducting systematic reviews and meta-analyses

Languages Skills

Working proficiency in English and French

Computer Skills

Knowledge of DHIS2
Knowledge of PowerBI or Tableau
Expert in R or Python statistical software

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MSF offers equal recruitment and development opportunities without any form of discrimination based on gender, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, geographical origin, physical disability or any other discriminatory ground.

Female candidates who meet the requirements are strongly encouraged to apply.

N.B.: This job description provides a framework for the main responsibilities and primary activities of the position. It is not exhaustive. Therefore, the responsibilities and activities of the position may differ from those described in this job description due to organizational and operational needs.

Deadline: February 25th 2024 18:00 GMT
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted