Position: Consultant, Maternal Health and PPTCT

Organization: UNICEF

Location: Karnataka

Apply: http://unicef.in/P11form.doc

Scope of Work:

State has seen a drastic decline in the maternal mortality ratio from 108 in 2014-16 to 69 per 100,000 live births in 2018-20 while the infant mortality rate stands at 21 per 1000 live births (SRS). Further, the caesarean birth rates varied from about 10% in less-developed states such as Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Bihar to well over the threshold of 15% in South India and other prosperous states. While Northeast India, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha, recorded less than 10% of caesarean births, the South Indian state accounted for over 35% caesarean births, with an average of 46% for Karnataka State. While there is a decline in the mortality there is an urgent need for accelerating further decline in MMR and C-Section rate and quality improvement of services

New initiatives have been identified by the state for roll-out aiming at reduction of anemia among pregnant women which is at 45%, reduction of c-section rate in the government facilities reporting high c-section rate, monitoring the private sector through e-birth monitoring system, improvement in the quality of services through quality certifications and development and training in standard operating procedures on high risk protocols etc.

Further, India is committed to 'ending the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat” by 2030 in line with Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). The Government of India has reaffirmed this commitment at the United Nations General Assembly in June 2016 during the High-Level Meeting (HLM) on AIDS, as well as at other platforms such as BRICS.

Achieving this goal will entail us to adopt the 'Fast-Track' targets, including the 95-95-95 targets, by 2030. However, it requires sustained commitment and action to address the scale of challenges ahead. The Government of India will also accord priority attention to eliminating mother to child transmission of HIV and Syphilis by 2030. India is one of the 22 Global Priority Countries which have to meet the two Global Plan targets for elimination of new HIV infections among children and keeping their mothers alive. The Country is committed to Elimination of Parent to Child Transmission (EPTCT) of HIV and syphilis by 2030. Karnataka State is one of the 7 high priority states for EVTHS and the state has taken many steps in scaling of Integrated Counseling and Testing Centres (ICTCs) with 472 facilities in public health sector and 408 in the private hospitals under the public private partnership (PPP) model and other private hospitals report the HIV indicators through HIV pulse (an app for reporting private sector data). Though the coverage is above 95% in HIV counseling and testing, the gap remains in initiating ART treatment to the identified positive pregnant women. With early diagnosis and appropriate interventions, the PTCT can be reduced to < 5% in breastfeeding population. UNICEF is committed to support the GOI in reduction of maternal and new born mortality through supporting the maternal, newborn and child health quality of care initiatives and adolescent health program implementation at national as well as State level. Much more needs to be done over the next 7 years for India to achieve the 2030 SDG targets.

UNICEF is already providing ongoing support for quality improvement of maternity services and is the knowledge partner for the state. Ongoing support includes LaQshya, Midwifery, High-risk management protocols and other key interventions to reduce maternal mortality. In order to implement key Maternal Health and PPTCT interventions under the National Health Mission in terms of strategic planning, identification of bottlenecks and facilitation of corrective actions and monitoring, capacity building and effective institutional coordination, UNICEF proposes to place a technical consultant with the Department of Health and Family Welfare in Karnataka.

Minimum Qualifications required: Masters Post graduate Degree or Diploma in Public Health or Community Medicine or Post graduate degree in Health Administration / Social work/ Psychology

Years of Experience/Knowledge/Expertise/Skills required:

• Minimum of 10 years of experience in the field of maternal health programme and HIV / PPTCT in public / private sector
• At least eight years or more experience in project planning, project implementation, coordination, research and evaluation and training at the State level
• Candidates with good understanding of government sector and its functioning. Preference will be given to candidates having experience of working with Government of Karnataka
• Computer proficiency with high level of familiarity with data base management; and commonly used packages like MS Office – Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Email and Web Browsers, Internet Explorer, Epi-info and Stata etc.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English are mandatory. In addition, the consultant should be able to read, write and speak in Kannada, Hindi and English languages.
• Candidates need to have excellent presentation skills, analytical and interpersonal abilities will be given preference.
• Should be able to travel 3-5 days in a month.

Should be self-motivated, hard-working, team player, energetic and creative with good analytical skills.

A) Technical Evaluation (maximum of 75 Points)       

 B) Financial Proposal  (minimum of 25 Points)

1. Educational Qualification: 20 points
2. Overall Work Experience: 15 points
3. Work Experience specific to HIV / PPTCT in public sector: 15 points
4. Interview: 25 points

Qualifying score in technical evaluation is 60% out of 75 Points

The candidate who gets 45 marks will get qualified for financial bid opening