Head of Health & Care at the Nigerian Red Cross Society (NRCS)

The Nigerian Red Cross Society (NRCS) was established through an Act of the Parliament in 1960 to complement public authorities in humanitarian interventions with the mandate to prevent and alleviate human suffering at times of peace or conflict, and to support individuals and communities to respond effectively to emergencies, without any form of discrimination as to class, gender, race, political opinions or religion.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Head of Health & Care

Location: Abuja
Department: Health & Care
Job Family: Programmes
Contract Type: Permanent
Reports To: Director, Programmes
Direct Reports: Assistant Coordinator Health & Care, Health & Care Officer

Job Summary

• The Head of Health & Care will be responsible for developing health and care programme strategies in undertaking operational, institutional capacity building activities and health related intervention programmes. He/She will be responsible for effectively addressing emerging issues, risks and opportunities.
• The Head of Health & Care will ensure that the appropriate tools, strategies, standards, approaches, protocols, etc. are widely understood and practiced at the headquarters and branches. She/He will establish regional, national and community-based tools, preparedness and response plans.
• She/He will coordinate the NRCS engagement with relevant government stakeholders and other humanitarian agencies on health-related issues

Main Duties and Responsibilities
Strategic:

• Design, develop and implement the NS Strategic and Operational Health and Care Programme, contingency/EPR Health plans and budgets.
• Develop proposals for new programmes building on technical knowledge and understanding of Nigeria-specific health issues
• Ensure that relevant guidelines and best practices are followed in community-based health (CBH) programme assessment, planning and implementation
• Define a clear strategic direction for Health and Care programming taking into consideration the findings of periodic nationwide assessments
• Oversee the development of workplans for health programmes (nutricion, immunization, community-based programs, etc) in Nigeria
• Develop solid and sustainable partnerships and mobilize financial resources to ensure that NRCS can fulfil its mandate in Disaster Management and Disaster Risk Reduction.

Operational:

• Monitor the national spread and severity of current epidemic diseases and proactively communicate emerging health related issues to relevant focal points of contact as appropriate
• Develop epidemics contingency plans and epidemics preparedness plans working with all relevant stakeholders in the country
• Provide advice and coaching on Health programmes, including development and adaptation of early warning systems in collaboration with partners.
• Establish strong collaboration and cooperation with the Movement partners, PNSs, Government and other partners on Health programming and EPR at international, National, State, LGA and Community levels.
• Coordinate the regular monitoring and reporting on all health programmes executed by the HQ and the branches
• Oversee the training of volunteers supporting social mobilisation, case management and surveillance of common diseases
• Represent NRCS in relevant health sector forums and networks in country. Develop credible and good quality information about technical knowhow and lessons and share among these sectors and forums
• In coordination with the Director of HR, review and approve training curriculum/strategy for the Nigerian Red Cross Health staff covering areas such as community-based health and nutrition approaches, in addition to organizational skills such as project planning, budgeting, reporting and proposal writing
• Ensure that upcoming tools for deployment are adopted and utilized to their full potential in community-based health programmes
• Prepare regular quality technical reports, including financial and narrative reports for the attention of NRCS Board, management, movement partners and donors
• Lead and promote the development of quality program and project proposals in Health to be submitted to donors and partners (Pillar 2)
• Lead and promote the development of guidance and standards for Health activities at branch level (Pillar 1)
• Perform any other work-related duties and responsibilities that may be assigned by the Director of Programmes
• Perform annual job performance reviews (APER) of staff of the Health Department.

Duties applicable to all staff:

• Work actively towards the achievement of the NRCS goals
• Abide by and work in accordance with the Red Cross Fundamental Principles and NRCS Statutes

Key Performance Areas:

• Quality and relevance of health and care proposals
• Percentage of proposals funded by donors
• Quality and timeliness of health and care reports
• Compliance of health and care programmes to donor requirements
• Compliance with the society’s standard operating procedures

Qualifications and Experience

• First degree from a reputable institution in Medicine, Public Health or Health-related discipline
• Post-graduate degree in Medicine, Public Health or Health-related discipline is an added advantage
• Professional qualification in Health-related certified courses
• Minimum of 10 years relevant working experience, with at least 3 years in a management level position
• Experience in supervising and Training of Teams
• Work experience in a non-profit organization is a significant advantage

Skills and Competencies
Essential:

• Strong judgment and ability to identify and analyse problems and to think strategically to anticipate, interpret and develop strategic responses to issues
• Ability to persuade, influence, manage and sustain effective, successful strategic relationships both internally and externally
• Strong negotiation skills and the ability to persuade others to adopt a specific course of action to achieve desired results
• Proficiency in data analysis tools and software
• Proficiency in the use of MS office tools
• Excellent communication skills in English. Fluency in other languages is an added advantage
• Monitoring, analysis and Reporting skills

Desirable:

• Understanding of NRCS support functions

Behavioural Competencies:

• Capable of communicating analysis and insights effectively, and articulate when communicating
• Demonstrated success in relationship building internally and externally with a wide array of stakeholders
• Ability to build and protect the reputation of self and society through the quality of work, knowledge and experience
• High ethical standards and honesty in handling the organizational resources and zero tolerance to corruption
• Culturally sensitive, globally minded and show respect to the views and opinions of others
• Ability to collaborate and work well in a team
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines

Application Closing Date
6th March, 2020.

Method of Application
Interested and qualified candidates should forward their CV and Cover Letter to: recruitment@redcrossnigeria.org with the Position applied for/Name of Applicant, as subject of the email