National Mobile Application (App) Development Consultant

Purpose of the Consultancy

The purpose of this consultancy is to design, develop, test and deploy a secure, user-friendly, multilingual and scalable mobile application that enables doctors and other authorized health-care professionals to rapidly access approved, evidence-based guidance for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and management of common noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). The application will serve primarily as a clinical reference and decision-support resource and will not replace professional clinical judgment, national policies, approved treatment guidelines or the responsibilities of health-care providers

Background

Noncommunicable diseases are among the major causes of morbidity and mortality globally and represent an important public health challenge. Effective prevention, early detection, diagnosis, treatment and long-term management of NCDs require health-care providers to have timely access to evidence-based clinical guidance and standardized treatment protocols.

The World Health Organization has developed evidence-based tools and technical packages to support NCD management, including our client Package of Essential Noncommunicable Disease Interventions (our client PEN) and the HEARTS technical package. These resources provide practical guidance for the management of cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, diabetes and other priority NCD conditions.

In routine clinical practice, health-care providers may face challenges accessing lengthy guidelines and technical documents when rapid clinical decisions are required. There is therefore an opportunity to improve access to relevant guidance through a user-friendly digital platform that organizes approved clinical information in a format appropriate for use at the point of care.

Our client intends to develop a multilingual mobile application for doctors and other authorized health-care professionals. The application is envisaged to be available in English, Dari and Pashto, with appropriate support for right-to-left languages and, where technically feasible, offline access to core content. Our client therefore seeks a qualified consultant with demonstrated expertise in digital health, mobile application development, health information systems, user-experience design and multilingual digital solutions.

1.Work to be performed

Output 1: Inception and application design

·Inception report with workplan, stakeholder consultations findings, functional and technical requirements, multilingual approach, content structure, and proposed application architecture.

·Approved user interface/user experience prototype and navigation structure for English, Dari, and Pashto.

Deliverables

Deliverable 1.1

              Inception Report, including:

oDetailed workplan and implementation schedule.

oStakeholder consultation findings.

oFunctional and technical requirements.

oProposed multilingual approach for English, Dari, and Pashto.

oStructure and organization of NCD clinical content.

oProposed application architecture and technical solution

Deliverable 1.2

         User Interface/User Experience Design Package, including:

oApplication wireframes and screen designs.

oUser journey and navigation structure.

oSearch and content access pathways.

oMultilingual interface design for English, Dari, and Pashto

          Output 2: Development and testing of the multilingual mobile application

oFunctional mobile application providing access to approved NCD clinical guidelines, treatment protocols, algorithms, referral information, and related tools.

oCore features to include multilingual content, search, offline access where feasible, version control, and basic content management arrangements.

oTesting and quality assurance report covering functionality, usability, language display, security/privacy safeguards, and performance.

Deliverables 2

Deliverable 2.1: Functional Multilingual Mobile Application, providing access to:

oApproved NCD clinical guidelines.

oTreatment protocols and clinical algorithms.

oReferral information and related clinical tools.

oEnglish, Dari, and Pashto content.

Deliverable 2.2: Integrated Core Application Features, including, where technically feasible:

oMultilingual content display.

oSearch and navigation functions.

oOffline access to selected content.

oVersion control and content update arrangements.

Deliverable 2.2: Testing and Quality Assurance Report, covering:

oFunctional and technical testing.

oUsability and user experience testing.

oEnglish, Dari, and Pashto language display.

oBasic security and privacy safeguards.

·Acceptance criteria: The application is functional, key features have been tested, and major identified defects have been addressed to the satisfaction of our client.

Output 3: Deployment, documentation, and handover

·Deployment of the application in the agreed environment and demonstration to our client/MoPH stakeholders.

·User and administrator guidance, technical documentation, source code/configuration handover, and recommendations for maintenance and future updates.

·Completion report summarizing activities, achievements, challenges, lessons learned, and outstanding actions.

·Deliverables:

      Deliverable 3.1: Deployed Mobile Application, including:

oDeployment in the agreed technical environment.

oDemonstration of the application to our client/MoPH stakeholders.

oFinal confirmation that the agreed core functions are operational.

      Deliverable 3.2: Documentation and Handover Package, including:

oUser guide for health workers and other users.

oAdministrator/content management guide.

oTechnical and system documentation.

oSource code, configuration files, and relevant technical assets.

oRecommendations for maintenance, hosting, content updating, and future improvements.

Deliverable 3.3: Final Consultancy Completion Report, including:

oSummary of activities completed.

oOutput and deliverables achieved.

oChallenges and mitigation measures.

oRecommendations for sustainability and scale-up.

·Acceptance criteria: The application is deployed and demonstrated, the required documentation and technical assets are handed over, and the final report is approved by our client.

2.Technical Supervision

The selected Consultant will work on the supervision of:

3.Specific requirements

Qualifications required:

·Advanced university degree in computer science, software engineering, information systems, digital health, health informatics or a related field.        

Experience required:

·2 to 5 years demonstrated expertise in mobile application development, digital health, health information systems, user-experience design or multilingual digital solutions Relevant experience in digital health, health information systems or clinical decision-support solutions.

·Experience with multilingual applications, including right-to-left languages such as Dari and Pashto, is highly desirable.

·Experience in offline-capable applications, content-management systems, version control, cybersecurity, usability testing and technical documentation.

·Experience working with health-sector stakeholders and clinical experts is desirable.

 Skills / Technical skills and knowledge:

·Mobile application architecture and cross-platform development.

·Android development and, if included in scope, iOS development.

·Backend, database, API, hosting/cloud, synchronization and backup technologies.

·Secure data storage, secure communications, authentication, authorization, encryption, access controls and cybersecurity risk mitigation.

·User-centered design, wireframing, prototyping, usability testing and bug tracking.

·Management and presentation of clinical content, references, source attribution and version control.

·Ability to work with our client PEN, HEARTS and approved national/programm NCD guidelines without altering clinical recommendations.

·Strong documentation, communication, coordination and knowledge-transfer skills

- Language requirements:

·English: Expert level in reading and writing; strong spoken communication.

·Dari: Ability to support or coordinate accurate localization and clinical content review.

·Pashto: Ability to support or coordinate accurate localization and clinical content review.

4.Travel

   No Travel is out of Kabul province is required for the subject consultant

Public Health Officer and Head of NCD, MHPSS, and Drug Demand Reduction, WHE  

To be determined

To be determined

To be determined