Mobile Pharmacy Provider At ICAP

A major global health organization that has been improving public health in countries around the world for nearly two decades, ICAP works to transform the health of populations through innovation, science, and global collaboration. Based at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, ICAP has projects in more than 40 countries, working side-by-side with ministries of health and local governmental, non-governmental, academic, and community partners to confront some of the world’s greatest health challenges. Through evidence-informed programs, meaningful research, tailored technical assistance, effective training and education programs, and rigorous surveillance to measure and evaluate the impact of public health interventions, ICAP aims to realize a global vision of healthy people, empowered communities, and thriving societies.

ICAP is registered in Tanzania as MSPH Tanzania LLC (Reg. No. 00002080) since 2004. ICAP operates under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Health (MoH) and President’s Office Regional Administration and Local Government (PO-RALG). In Tanzania, ICAP receives funding from the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through a partnership with CDC, supporting facility and community-based HIV prevention and care and treatment services, COVID-19 response, as well as HIV-related research in Tanzania.

With funding from PEPFAR through CDC, ICAP is currently implementing the “Sustain and Accelerate a Comprehensive HIV Response’’ project (known as the FIKIA+ Project) in all eight councils in Mwanza region aiming to achieve rapid acceleration of ART initiation, strengthen treatment continuity and improve HIV viral load (VL) suppression among people living with HIV (PLHIV). Furthermore, FIKIA+ also aims to ensure that high-quality combination prevention interventions, including voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC), DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe) programming, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and access to condoms to achieve epidemic control, are accessible to at-risk and vulnerable population groups. ICAP supports a total of 208 health facilities in Mwanza region, supporting lifesaving antiretroviral therapy (ART) services to approximately 118,000 people living with HIV. The FIKIA+ Project is currently in its second year of the five-year cooperative agreement.

ICAP in Tanzania is seeking to employ competent, dynamic individuals with strong technical knowledge and public health management skills in implementing program objectives to join our team. Positions are contingent upon availability of grant funding. ICAP at Columbia University is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer.

Position Title: Mobile Pharmacy Provider
Reports to: Community Coordinator
Employment Type: Full-time
Job Location: Mwanza
Travel: Up to 70% in intervention districts outside of the job location

Position Summary:
The Mobile Pharmacy Provider works with the ICAP regional team, health care workers, and community lay workers to conduct differentiated service delivery for HIV care and treatment by supporting comprehensive CTC services and HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in community settings per national guidelines and SOPs.

Roles and Responsibilities:

• Enroll stable clients into the Differentiated Service Delivery (DSD) model, verifying criteria and providing education to clients on outreach modalities
• Identify fixed community locations for PrEP and ART refill for eligible clients in collaboration with R/CHMT, healthcare workers, and peer volunteers.
• Register all clients in ART/PrEP outreach registers and ensure information is captured in health facility records.
• Develop w or monthly calendar showing the exact date, time and location (fixed point) for ART/PrEP refill.
• Retrieve and review all files for community refill prior to the event
• Submit pharmacy supply requisition prior to the event
• Ensure all other logistics are in place, including transport (Bajaji), registers, and forms, utilizing checklists.
• Support comprehensive clinical services for ART/PrEP as per national care and treatment guidelines
• Review client eligibility for ART/PrEP refill on each encounter
• Update all registers and forms and submit them to the respective department for update in the database
• Assist with monitoring program performance and timely and accurate submission of activity reports, and suggest adjustments as needed to the implementation plan
• Return all remaining medicines to the pharmacy to update pharmacy inventory.
• Follow up with clients to remind them of their refill schedule in collaboration with peer volunteers
• Complete index elicitation and set appointments for index testing for eligible and willing clients.
• Perform any other tasks as assigned by the supervisor.

Qualifications, Knowledge, and Skills:

• Required Education: Medically trained personnel (nurse, Clinical Officer, MD, MBBS or equivalent) who have current certification, qualifications, and training on the provision of HIV care and treatment services.
  • Required Technical Experience: Minimum 2 years’ experience in the provision of HIV care and treatment services in a facility or community setting
  • Required Other Experience: Must be able to drive and hold a valid, current national driving license for category B/D (four passenger vehicle) in Tanzania.
• Excellent speaking, reading, and writing skills in English and Kiswahili
• Excellent computer skills, at minimum, with Microsoft Office package
• Ability to maintain confidentiality regarding clients’ health status and the sensitive information contained in data sources.
• Flexibility to work after normal working hours and weekends at informal gatherings and entertainment centers and travel extensively to remote areas, including islands.
• Ability to interact well with all targeted groups and peer outreach workers by facilitating a non-judgmental, non-discriminatory, and non-stigmatizing environment in the program to welcome all key and vulnerable population beneficiaries regardless of their background
• Must be a Tanzanian Citizen