Health Officer

BACKGROUND: The International Rescue Committee, one of the world’s largest humanitarian international NGOs, provides relief, rehabilitation and development support to vulnerable people and communities over 30 countries. We began work in Ethiopia in 2000 in response to severe drought in Ethiopia’s Somali region and are currently providing assistance to Ethiopians and refugees in six regions in Ethiopia, implementing emergency and development programs in health, water and sanitation, economic recovery and development (ERD), women’s protection and empowerment, education, child protection, and multi-sectoral emergency response.

Scope/job purpose:

Under the direct supervision of the camp manager and health manager, the health officer will lead Women's Integrated Sexual Health (WISH) and HIV/AIDS prevention program activities in the camp. He/she will regularly provide technical supports to health social workers, team leaders, FP counselors, and different volunteers. In addition, he/she is a focal person for proper planning, coordinating, implementing, controlling, and supervising health activities in the assigned refugee camp. He/she is a part of a health project team member who provides support to an ongoing humanitarian response to South Sudanese refugees in Benishangul Gumuz Regional State, Ethiopia. He /she will work closely with key refugee community members, the Agency for Refugee and Returnees Affairs (ARRA), UNHCR, and other Stakeholders for the successful realization and implementation of program activities.

Detailed responsibilities:

Program management and implementation

• Ensure that all sexual reproductive health (SRH) activities are coordinated, and implemented well as per the project proposal, work plan, and M & E plan.
• Establish social and behavioral change communication approaches to aware and sensitize the refugee communities on SRH at Tsore Camp.
• Provide family planning education, counseling, and pills distribution services at IRC RH center and trace the users on regular basis.
• Promote and distribute male and female condoms through establishing distribution outlets and community workers.
• Build a strong working relationship with the MCH department of ARRA health center to improve clinical RH service uptake and its quality.
• Plans and conducts community sensitization campaigns on SRH.
• Represent IRC at different meetings, workshops, task force meetings, etc.
• Work with youth health club members and other IPs working on youth to promote family planning and condoms to adolescents and youth groups in the camp.
• Ensure timely and accurate recording of FP clients and referrals in relevant client registers and kept confidential.
• Ensure that RH interventions used as per the standard protocols, policies, and guidance prescribed by the MoH and WHO.
• Conduct workshops, training, and presentations on Adolescent and Youth SRH to different community workers, volunteers, and implementing partners’ staff.
• Attend monthly health and nutrition coordination meetings and other relevant meetings facilitated by implementing partners at the camp level.
• Follow IRC safety and security procedures and provide input to security monitoring and assessments to enable and promote a safe and secure environment for program implementation.
• Stay up-to-date on health-related humanitarian situations in the country specifically on SRH, Post-abortion, and safe abortion care.
• Perform other tasks as assigned by his/her supervisor/s.

Grants Management

• Prepare weekly BVA and PR audit report for active grants and communicate to the finance, and supply chain team for immediate action.
• Check the status of PR for all active grants in line with procurement and spending plan and take immediate action.
• Revise Activity, spending, and procurement plans regularly.
• Utilize program material optimally to avoid old grant depositions.
• Raise PRs as required after discussion with colleagues.
• Ensure that budget expenditures are as per donor rules and regulations for each active grant.

Monitoring & Evaluation

• Conduct regular monitoring and evaluation of the program activities and make sure that monthly & quarter indicators met or not as per the plan.
• Collaborate with the MEAL field office team to collect feedback from clients and closely work on response provision mechanisms.
• Participate in encouraging supervision, quarter monitoring visits, and annual monitoring visits conducted in the camps and share the finding with the health manager.
• Participate in the internal and external evaluation of emergency response interventions.
• Conduct community and facility-based health data auditing regularly and details the findings/ reports.
• Collect, compile, and submit weekly, monthly, and quarterly progress and update reports to the program on time.
• Ensure establishment and maintain quality data management system for community base RH projects.

Human Resource Management

• Actively take part in recruitment, mentoring, and training of health refugee laborers and volunteers.
• Prepare and submit attendance, and pay sheet for health refugee labor on time.

Key Working Relationships:

Internal

• Build strong integration with Community Well-being Initiative (CWI), Environmental Health (EH), and Child protection programs

External

• Work with refugee communities, ARRA, NHCR, Woredas Health Office, HAPCO, and other implementing partners.