Founded in 2002, by President William J. Clinton, the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) is a global health nonprofit organization committed to strengthening integrated health systems around the world and expanding access to care and treatment for HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other illnesses. Based on the premise that business-oriented strategy can facilitate solutions to global health challenges, CHAI acts as a catalyst to mobilize new resources and optimize the impact of these resources to save lives, via improved organization of commodity markets and more effective local management. By working in association with governments and other NGO partners, CHAI is focused on large scale impact, expanding access to life-saving technologies using a sustainable model that can be owned and maintained by governments.  To date, CHAI has secured lower pricing agreements for treatment options in more than 70 countries. In addition, CHAI’s teams are working side-by-side with close to governments over 35 countries to tackle many of the largest barriers to effective treatment and care.

CHAI PNG overview

In 2006, CHAI commenced its mission in Papua New Guinea and worked to assist the National Department of Health (NDOH) in scaling up HIV care and treatment in urban and rural communities. The program span for eleven years from 2006 – 2017, during which CHAI established its presence in the National Capital District (NCD), Eastern Highlands, Western Highlands and Southern Highlands, but also impacted the health system at the National level. Currently, CHAI is assisting the government to deliver its expanded program in immunization at the national level, whilst supporting Central and Morobe Provinces at the subnational level. CHAI PNG is also starting a Labs Program, focused on scale-up of antigen testing as part of the country’s overall COVID-19 response.

Position Overview

The Program Manager, Diagnostics (PM) will lead efforts in PNG to deliver the  objectives of the laboratory program, under the guidance and direction of the Country Manager. The PM will provide both strategic and technical direction for the laboratory program, overseeing its development and assuming responsibility for high quality delivery. The position will be based in Port Moresby with regular domestic travel expected, as conditions allow.

Working together with and supported by the CHAI PNG Country Manager and Senior Advisor, the Lab Program Manager will:

• Develop and maintain strong engagement with key government stakeholders and partners involved in the diagnostics space for Covid-19 response
• Advocate and support adoption and uptake of current and novel diagnostic tools, e.g. antigen tests, self-sampling, etc. to improve testing access
• Collaborate with relevant in-country stakeholders to drive the successful execution of antigen testing implementation and systems strengthening efforts:
  • Review and revision of Covid-19 national testing guidance, as needed
  • Planning and execution of antigen RDT trainings in four provinces
  • Support integrated laboratory system strengthening and improvement of labs and antigen testing support systems (e.g. data and result management, stock monitoring, quality assurance, etc.)
  • Design and implement monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems to measure the impact of lab program, assess progress against project goals, and capture/disseminate emerging best practices
• Drive internal strategic planning and budgeting processes related to the laboratory program operations and finance, as well as oversee project implementation and performance against work plans and budget
• Identify strategic areas for expansion or redirection to maximize health impact and lead proposal development as needed
• Supervise and provide professional development guidance and support to more junior staff
• Perform other duties that may be assigned by country leadership

• Bachelor's degree with a minimum of 6 years' professional work experience in a fast-paced work environment
• Experienced people manager with at least 2 years of people management
• Ability to work effectively in a multicultural and high-pressure environment, able to manage multiple tasks simultaneously and set priorities
• Strong interpersonal skills; ability to build relationships with government and NGO representatives
• Solid strategic planning and project management track record, including experience managing and developing demanding work plans and budgets
• Familiarity with global health issues, particularly COVID-19, HIV and TB
• English language fluency, both written and verbal required

Advantages

• Master’s degree in relevant field like public health, policy, or science
• Lab and diagnostics-related experience, either in a programmatic or clinical setting
• Strong analytical skills and technical proficiency with MS Excel and PowerPoint
• Experience working with government and ministries of health to achieve collaborative goals
• Previous work experience in PNG