Laboratory and Diagnostic Consultant for the Compendium of Standard Requirements in establishing TB laboratories

URGENT CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

FHI 360/Philippines (www.fhi360.org) is looking for a Laboratory and Diagnostic Consultant for the Compendium of Standard Requirements in establishing TB laboratories under a short-term work engagement status for USAID’s TB Innovations and Health Systems Strengthening project in the Philippines.

About FHI 360:

FHI 360 is a nonprofit human development organization dedicated to improving lives in lasting ways by advancing integrated, locally driven solutions. Our staff includes experts in health, education, nutrition, environment, economic development, civil society, gender, youth, research, technology, communication, and social marketing- creating a unique mix of capabilities to address today’s interrelated development challenges. FHI 360 serves more than 70 countries and all U.S. states and territories.

Background:

The TB Innovations and Health Systems Strengthening (TB IHSS) Project is a 5-year USAID-funded project that aims to strengthen national and regional level implementation of the National TB Strategic Plan by providing state-of-the-art capacity building and technical expertise to scale-up TB and DR-TB prevention, detection, and treatment. The Project will identify and help implement proven approaches to improve prevention, increase case detection rates, decrease default rates, and increase treatment success and cure rates across the continuum of care.

Detailed Description of Tasks to be Performed:

TBIHSS will be providing technical support to the National TB Reference Laboratory (NTRL) and Disease Prevention and Control Bureau (DPCB) by developing a Compendium of Standard Requirements in establishing TB laboratories which will aid in better access to necessary information in putting up a TB laboratory or in addressing licensing and/or accreditation matters in accordance with new policies and current health situation in the country.

The identified consultant shall perform the following:

1. Develop a compendium of standard requirements in establishing different tiers of TB laboratories which include sputum smear microscopy, rapid TB diagnostic laboratory (RTDL), TB culture (TBC), and drug susceptibility testing (DST) laboratory, and line probe assay (LPA) laboratory, in accordance with the existing licensing-related policies of the Department of Health’s Health Facilities and Services Regulatory Bureau (HFSRB) and other concerned agencies.

2. Conducts and facilitates coordination meetings with concerned stakeholders on the progress of the manual development.

3. Prepare and submit required reports to the Laboratory and Diagnostics Team of TBIHSS periodically.

4. Submit pertinent documents as required by Admin and Finance Units.

Required Skills:

· Technical writing skills with focus on manual and reference material development.

· Excellent oral and written communication skills.

· Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite, particularly, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

· Ability to work independently with minimal supervision and work with others effectively.

Required Education/Job Experience:

· Bachelor’s degree in biological or laboratory sciences, allied health courses, or equivalent.

· Master’s or doctorate degree is an advantage.

· Experience in manual and guidelines development with excellent technical writing skills.

· With strong knowledge and experience on requirements in establishing different tiers of TB laboratories.

· Previous experience in developing technical reports, issuances, or manuals for Department of Health (DOH) disease programs.

· Experience in conducting coordination meetings and collaborating with DOH, and other relevant stakeholders and/or implementing agencies.

Target Engagement Period:

May 2022 to July 2022