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Qualifications

1. Purpose of consultancy

The purpose of this consultancy is to develop standards document and Part II of the national infection prevention and control (IPC) guidelines in coordination with the national authorities of Jordan.

2. Background  

Evidence-based IPC guidelines are considered among the priority functions of national IPC programme. IPC guidelines should be developed and implemented for the purpose of reducing healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Guidelines include IPC good practices and procedures and when implemented in combination with healthcare workers education and training, they can lead to reduction in HAIs.

Technical IPC guidelines should provide clear evidence-based standards and a framework for local adaptation, and they provide a means by which health care facilities can be held accountable. The availability of technical IPC guidelines on IPC programme organization and key IPC practices is usually a prerequisite for rolling out IPC education and training, including IPC monitoring and evaluation.

The MOH in Jordan has requested WHO to assist in updating its current national IPC guidelines. The current edition was developed in 2017. MoH has formulated a national group including experts of various disciplines to update the national IPC guidelines. WHO Jordan Country Office has supported MoH and the national group to finalize Part I of the national IPC guidelines in 2022. The national group decided to divide the national guidelines into two parts; Part I focuses on general IPC measures and practices and included 16 chapters. Part II will focus on specific types of HAIs (CLABSI, CAUTI, SSI, for example) and specific healthcare settings and patient populations (such as burn units, neonatal ICUs, and transplant recipients). In this context, WHO Jordan Country Office is aiming to support the review, update and finalization of the Part II of the national IPC guidelines.

3. Work to be performed

Output 1: guide the national technical group and provide technical expertise to develop national IPC policy and standards document based on the national IPC guidelines Parts I

Deliverable 1.1: Submit a draft of the national policy and standards document for Jordan

Output 2: Coach the national technical group in Jordan on the scope and content of the Part II of the new version of the national IPC guidelines and provide needed reference materials and technical support to draft the new version of the guidelines

Deliverable 2.1: Finalize scope and table of content of the updated version of the national IPC guidelines.

Output 3: Conduct technical briefings to national technical group and provide technical support to review, update and edit the draft of Part II of the national IPC guidelines in collaboration with the national technical group at the Ministry of Health.

Deliverable 3.1: Submit A completed technically sound final version of the national IPC guidelines for Jordan

Output 4: Obtain final consensus from the guideline development group and other stakeholders in Jordan on the final IPC guideline Part II document by sharing the changes and agreeing on them through:

• Facilitate workshop (virtual if face-to-face is not possible) with the national guideline development group and experts assigned by the MOH.
• Ensure all changes have been approved by the group.
• Discuss and agree on dissemination and implementation plan to promote the uptake and adaptation of Part II guidelines in healthcare facilities.

Deliverable 4.1: A consensus from the national guideline group on the final copy of the guidelines.

4. Qualifications, experience, skills and languages

Educational Qualifications:

Minimum first university degree for lower end of range, an advanced university degree for mid and high end of range in public health, epidemiology and surveillance, infectious disease, laboratory sciences, microbiology, or other health related fields.

Experience:

5 to 10 years of experience in IPC.

Skills/Technical skills and knowledge:

Knowledge of research and practice issues around IPC.

Excellent report writing skills in English and Arabic.

IPC related publications are highly desirable.

Languages and level required:

Excellent knowledge of both Arabic and English.

5. Location

The consultant will be working mainly from his/her place of residence. The Consultant is expected to travel to Jordan to conduct the consensus workshops if the COVID-19 situation permits.

6. Planned timelines (60 working days – Dates are subject to confirmation)

Start date: 1 June 2023
End date: 15 November 2023

7. Medical clearance

The selected Consultant will be expected to provide a medical certificate of fitness for work.

8. Travel

The Consultant is expected to travel to Amman, Jordan during the period of the contract.

Additional Information

• This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar consultancies at the same level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• If your candidature is retained for interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
• For information on WHO’s operations please visit: http://www.who.int.
• WHO is committed to workforce diversity.
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Member States are particularly encouraged.
• WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.
• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.