Consultant for Feasibility Analysis of Connected Diagnostics for Malaria at PharmAccess

PharmAccess Foundation is a government health agency. At PharmAccess, our goal is to make inclusive health markets work in sub-Saharan Africa. Realizing that first, wealth is health.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Consultant for Feasibility Analysis of Connected Diagnostics for Malaria

Location: Lagos
Employment Type: Contract
Duration: Five (5) months

Background

• Nigerian National Malaria Guidelines mandate parasitological testing for all suspected malaria cases through microscopy or malaria rapid diagnostic tests (mRDTs).
• Testing before treating suspected malaria cases saves lives since there are other causes of fever in this region.
• However, adherence to this guideline remains difficult since most people with symptoms of malaria seek care first at private providers, such as Community Pharmacies (CP’s) and patent propriety medicine vendors (PPMVs) where no tests are available or offered.
• This haphazard usage of malaria parasitological testing risks overprescription, increased population drug resistance and poor individual case management.
• The private health sector remains a black box for evidence of service delivery and quality, as epidemiological data is not reported by private providers to African health systems. With Connected Diagnostics (ConnDx) we aim to increase diagnosis of malaria within the private sector, reduce irrational use of antimalarial drugs, improve the quality of care and improve quality and timeliness of data reporting; thus, complementing public sector efforts to reverse the recent decline in control of malaria in Nigeria.
• Within this project, we aim to deliver a proof of principle, that is potentially replicable on a large scale, for the decentralization of digital malaria rapid diagnostic tests in Nigeria and more active involvement of the private health sector.
• Private Community pharmacies (CPs) and patent propriety medicine vendors (PPMVs) often serve as the first point of care for patients with fever.
• The goal is to digitally support the full malaria patient journey from testing to treatment of malaria by providing these CP/PPMV outlets with digital testing and referral tools, collect and display real-time data on a dashboard to policy makers of demographics and malaria test results of febrile patients and thus develop a use case that is attractive for all health system players (patients, providers, payers, policy makers).
• The feasibility analysis is the initial exploratory stage to provide foundational information to set up the proof of principle for scaling. 

Project Objectives

• To conduct a feasibility analysis for decentralizing malaria rapid diagnostic tests to be performed by CPs and PPMVs in Nigeria and supporting the full malaria patient journey through digitization.
• The CPs and PPMVs are the primary target group. CPs and PPMV’s will be requested to perform mRDT for suspected malaria cases and treat non-complicated malaria when the test result is positive.
• In cases of complicated malaria, they will be asked to refer people to public or private health care providers.
• The mRDT results will be digitalized through mobile phone photography using an App and uploaded to a cloud for AI interpretation.
• The AI-interpreted results will be displayed on digital dashboards, accessible to decision makers, such as the National Malaria Elimination Program.
• CPs and PPMVs will receive a mobile incentive for a) conducting a malaria test before prescribing treatment, b) for correct referral to primary healthcare providers and c) for prescribing correct treatment that is of good quality i.e. non-counterfeit.
• These drugs are supplied by medical supply chain providers. CPs and PPMVs will be institutionalized and support the full patient journey from testing to treatment of malaria in the private sector.

Scope of Work
The consultant is requested to conduct both desk- and field research which include the following activities:
Desk research:

• Conduct desk research for landscaping on the malaria health problem in Nigeria, the distribution and types of PPMV’s and CPs and the services they offer, the behaviors of community members who visit CPs and PPMVs when they have fever, PPMVs, CPs and health care providers in testing and treating malaria and identify challenges, opportunities, and existing efforts to address them, map potential risks and constraints of the project idea and potential external influences.
• Sizing of the market(s) and quick market scan based on desirability, viability, feasibility, and impact of the project idea, namely decentralizing and digitizing the malaria patient journey including testing, treatment and referral where needed by CPs and PPMVs in Nigeria. This would also include an estimate total addressable market (TAM) and the serviceable market (SAM) of CPs and PPMVs.
• Map competitor landscape by exploring which interventions have already been put into place to address malaria and have included CPs and PPMVs and where the gaps are, nationally and internationally i.e. What sets our idea apart from existing solutions or competitors in the market
• Develop criteria to compare various geographic locations in Nigeria with respect to offering opportunities for ConnDx roll-out. Propose 3-5 locations and grade those according to defined criteria (e.g. malaria prevalence, PPMV density, SFH priority, etc.).
• Conduct stakeholder mapping and analysis to identify which informal and formal stakeholders currently influence the behaviour of the target customer (CPs/PPMVs) in the context of the problem and potential partner mapping for the scalability and sustainability of the project
• Simple cost analysis of costs and gains of business as usual versus our approach 

Field research:

• Analyze customer journey i.e. problems, pain points, gains and needs of CPs and PPMVs as primary target group via in-depth interviews in at least 1 urban and 1 rural area of Nigeria
• Stakeholder engagement and input: Perform expert interviews with formal and informal stakeholders such as healthcare providers, community members/malaria patients, professional organizations, medical supply chain providers, policy makers, healthcare payers and other relevant stakeholders to understand their role in malaria case management, agenda’s, challenges, opportunities and their influence on the behavior of CPs and PPMVs in the context of the problem.

Tasks and Responsibilities
The consultant has the following tasks and responsibilities:

• Conduct desk research
• Develop interview protocols
• Recruit participants
• Schedule and conduct interviews
• Analyze data on information gathered
• Prepare reports and presentations
• Collaborate with stakeholders as needed
• Travel locally (domestic flights) as required by the project
• Align with project manager in NL and program manager in Nigeria.

Reporting:

• The consultant will report directly to the Project Manager and the Program Manager in Nigeria.

Expected Deliverables
Before the end of the 5 months, the consultant will deliver:
Desk research:

• Interim report: A draft report outlining preliminary findings and analysis
• A PowerPoint presentation including the approach used and most important findings
• A final report including the following deliverables:
• Clear problem definition.
• Defined target customer.
• Location advice for project setup.
• Overview of challenges, opportunities, and existing efforts,
• Potential risks & constraints
• Stakeholder mapping and analysis
• Potential partner mapping
• Potential market sizing
• Desirability, viability, feasibility, and impact of the project idea
• Competitor landscape mapping.
• Cost analysis.
• Advise of factors to consider in this project.

Field research:

• Interim report: A draft report outlining preliminary findings and analysis
• A PowerPoint presentation including the approach used and most important findings
• A final report including the following deliverables:
• Executive summary
• Clear problem definition.
• Defined target customer (CPs and PPMVs).
• Analysis of current customer journey (i.e. CPs and PPMVs), and their problems, pain points, gains, needs, behaviors and their determinants.
• Stakeholder mapping and analysis to understand their role in malaria case management, opportunities, challenges, agenda, influence on behavior of CP’s and PPMVs.
• Advise of factors to consider in this malaria ConnDx project.

Required Skills and Competencies
The consultant applying for this position requires the following skills and competencies:

• Based in Nigeria
• Strong research and analytical skills
• Strong network
• Experience in extensive desk research
• Experience in conducting feasibility studies.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Knowledge of healthcare systems in Nigeria.
• Familiarity with community pharmacy and PPMV operations.
• Ability to conduct interviews and gather insights effectively.
• Knowledge of malaria and malaria National Guidelines is a plus.

Application Closing Date
8th April, 2024.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should submit their CV, Cover Letter, Examples of similar work done, Fee, and Proposed methodology, timelines and deliverables to "The Human Resources Manager" via: [email protected] using "Consultant for Feasibility Analysis" as the subject of the email.
OR
Click here to apply online