Clinical Mentors – (EpiC 3-90 project)

About CRS

Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identify is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as part of our staff and as partner’s people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and commitment to serving those in need. Since 2000 CRS Zambia has been implementing a number of programmes to support vulnerable communities in Zambian. Recent programming areas include: nutrition, agriculture, food security, HIV/AIDS, WASH, financial inclusion, and early child development.

Job Summary:

Overall:

• This position is intended to augment the position of the ART in-charge and not to takeover that role. For high volume sites, the post bearer shall be a qualified ML/CO, exceptional HNP may be considered; for medium volume facilities the post bearer must be a CO/HNP
• Work closely with the ART in-charge to coordinate HIV/TB activities at the facility and all Health Posts and Community Posts affiliated to the facility. The coordination includes all community activities by all community partners providing HTS within the catchment population of the facility, and linkage to treatment of all positives. At community level, tracking of missed and late appointment patient activities and support for DSD should be coordinated with bidirectional feedback and referral and TB screening of Recipients of Care (RoC) within DSD models as well as coordination of TPT use with community based models.
• The incumbent will serve as the lead facility based clinical mentor and provide technical guidance and mentorship for quality HIV/TB services
• The incumbent will support the ART in-charge in data analysis and utilization in the HIV cascade from prevention, testing, treatment, patient monitoring, care and support. Granular data analysis with real time development of strategies to address gaps on daily, weekly and monthly basis. In addition, the facility mentor will work to improve harmonization of data for MOH and EpiC 3-90 reporting.
• The incumbent will serve as the Point of Contact (PoC) for site level clarifications from the EpiC 3-90/CDC and will provide leadership during site visits and demonstrate understanding of the HIV/TB activities at the facility
• In addition, the incumbent will work with the facility administration to development site level budgets and action plans that addresses the needs of the facility as evidenced by gaps identified from the program and GSM visits using root cause analysis and QI principals and approaches that are to be funded by EPIC 3-90

HTS:

• The health facility clinical mentor will provide Technical Assistance (TA) to all testers to ensure correct and optimal use of the screening tools and support optimization of index testing for all newly identified HIV positive individuals (at the facility and in community) and high viral load RoC
• The clinical mentor will ensure Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) assessment is always integrated in index testing services and meeta expected safety and ethical levels
• The incumbent will develop a system for monitoring daily yields at all entry points and work with his/her teams to devise corrective action to align yield with PEPFAR Zambia’s goals.

Treatment:

• The incumbent will mentor facility staff in the routine and optimized treatment preparation for all the newly identified HIV positive individuals
• The incumbent will ensure all newly identified patients are screened for Known Positive Screening Tools to avoid initiating silent transfers on different regimens than their initial combination
• The incumbent will optimize screening for Advance HIV Disease for all new and old RoC and collection of samples for baseline investigations
• The incumbent will mentor ART providers at the facility on ART management and good customer relations. S/he will also serve as a subject matter expert for other providers to consult on difficult cases
• The incumbent will ensure use of optimal drug regimens as outlined by the national treatment guidelines and support scale up of DSD to meet the needs of different groups or populations accessing care at the facility. In addition, the incumbent will optimize TPT and track coverage for eligible RoC.

Patient Monitoring and Retention:

• As part of routine monitoring of RoC, the incumbent will have all RoC who are eligible get a viral load on file by supporting the VL champion and foster active tracking of results
• S/he will review patient records to monitor providers’ adherence to national standards for managing & monitoring RoC
• The incumbent will prioritize prevention of attrition and protect gains in TX_CURR
• S/he will support the ART in-charge in the day to day assignment of tasks to Community Based Volunteers (CBVs) and supervise the active daily tracking of patients with missed appointments. For RoC who are Late/LTFU and found, the incumbent will ensure feedback on cause of disengagement with care and develop strategies that meet the needs of RoC

Monitoring and Evaluation:

• The incumbent must be familiar with the PEPFAR Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting Indicators (as outlined in the MER 2.0 -Version 2.5- September 2020)
• Have good analytical skills
• Able to conduct thorough data reviews and able to infer clinical situations from presented data

Prevention

• The incumbent will have to work closely with the community teams to promote health education, mobilize clients to take on HIV services
• S/he will provide preventions services which include offer to eligible clients Cervical Cancer screening, TPT, Cotrimoxazole prophylaxis and VMMC.
• S/he will offer Treatment as Prevention ART services to mothers infected HIV that are pregnant and in discordant couples offer Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PreP)

Typical Background, Experience & Requirements:

Education and Professional Experience

• Medical Licentiate, Clinical Officer or HIV Nurse Prescriber
• Minimum of five years of clinical work experience in HIV care with progressive responsibilities, ideally with an international NGO, with minimum of three years of work experience in HIV programming
• Demonstrate application of technical principles and concepts in HIV clinical care and program coordination. General knowledge of other related disciplines to support proper cross-sectoral approaches
• Experience in mentoring, coaching, facilitation and training applying adult learning principles and practices.
• Experience with program monitoring and evaluation, including applying data collection tools and methodologies, data analysis, and data presentation
• Experience and skills in networking and relations with donors, peer organizations, and faith-based and civil society partners. Understanding of partnership principles
• Proficient in MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), Web Conferencing Applications, information and budget management systems, knowledge-sharing networks

Personal Skills

• Excellent relationship management skills with ability to influence and get buy-in from people not under direct supervision and to work with individuals in diverse geographical and cultural settings
• Strong strategic, analytical, problem-solving and systems thinking skills with capacity to see the big picture and ability to make sound judgement
• Strong written and oral communication skills in English
• Strong presentation, facilitation, training, mentoring, and coaching skills
• Proactive, resourceful and results-oriented

Required/Desired Foreign Language: Proficiency in English and any Zambian local language

Travel Required: 30% travel

Key Working Relationships:
Supervisory: None

Internal: EpiC 3-90 District Coordinator, District Data Manager, Provincial M&E Officer, Program Manager, Provincial Coordinator, EpiC 3-90 technical and SI Team

External: Hospital clinical staffs, District Health Director (DHD), District Health Information Officer, District Clinical care specialist, District ART Coordinator, District TB/HIV specialist.

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff):

These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

• Serves with Integrity
• Models Stewardship
• Cultivates Constructive Relationships
• Promotes Learning

Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skills, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Note: By applying for this job, you understand and acknowledge that CRS requires its staff to treat all people with dignity and respect and to actively prevent harassment, abuse, exploitation, and human trafficking. Further, you understand that if you are a successful candidate, you will be subject to a comprehensive background check, and your personal/professional references will be asked to evaluate your behaviors related to the above safeguarding-related topics.

Applicant Instructions: Please email a cover letter, and curriculum vitae which should include three references to: [email protected]. Please include the position you are applying for in the subject line.

The closing date for applications is 22 January 2021. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for interviews.