Quality Assurance Officer

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME

The mission of WHO's Health Emergencies Programme (The Programme) is to help countries, and tocoordinate international action, to prevent, prepare for, detect, rapidlyrespond to, and recover from outbreaks and emergencies. The WHO Dubai Logistics Hub serves as thelargest repository of health commodities and provides immediate response toacute health emergencies as well as long-term support to WHO country anddisease-specific programs. Yemencurrently represents 50% of all new Purchase Orders being received by the DubaiLogistics Hub and accounts for approximately 45% of all physical space or 8,000square meters of product valued at over USD 20 Million.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

During deployment, the duties maybe modified, based upon the technical needs of the Programme.

1. Design and implement a quality assurance protocol to ensure the integrity of all health commodities destined for Yemen and conduct acomprehensive review of all inventory on-hand and being sent to Dubai to identify items at risk of expiry or health kits that will require items to be removed to extend the shelf-life of the kit.
2. Complete a cost benefit analysis to triage the inventory on-hand and identify the most cost-effective solutions for extending the shelf-life of health kits, including manufacture date, expiry date, batch number, lot number, purchase order number, and value per unit of measure.
3. Segregate any medical supplies unfit for distributionin Yemen and develop detailed records to enable the WHO/Dubai Logistics Hub torapidly offer items with short shelf-life to other health emergencies in orderto minimize losses.
4. Design a programmatic approach toadopt best practices in inventory management of health commodities. Implement methodologies to ensure inventory data in WHO Dubai records and the GlobalInventory Management System (GIMS) are 100% aligned.
5. Analyze current inventory on-hand and items planned for receipt as well as under procurement and develop a comprehensive prioritization of health commodities based upona diverse array of variables in coordination with the WHO country officetechnical leads, logistics staff, and partners.
6. Establish new methodologies for monitoringthe items held in Dubai, items on the way to Dubai and those items underprocurement to ensure compliance with shelf-life requirements and adherence tothe First to Expire First Out (FEFO) protocols.
7. Triage high-priority requirements and developinnovative solutions for ensuring the delivery of time-sensitive shipments.
8. Establish an information sharing system toincrease the visibility of supplies held in Dubai and those in the pipelinewith the WHO/Yemen team by scheduling weeklyreviews of critical action points in order to prioritize the items required bythe country program and the method of transporting the supplies with a focus onquality assurance protocols.
9. Document a process map and standard operating procedures to ensure the protocols are institutionalized across the differentoffices.
10. Prepare all associated documentation and evidence for products reaching expiry to secure internal approvals as well as external approvals for the disposal of medical supplies within WHO and with national authorities.
11. Document a full array of reports to capture alldata required to adequately report to auditors (internal and external) in orderto justify the reasons for the disposal of assets.
12. Perform any other related incident-specificduties, as required by the functional supervisor.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Essential: A first level university degree in health (medicine, nursing), pharmacy or other related field with training in health logistics.
Desirable:

Experience

Essential: At least five years of relevant experience with international exposure in health commodity management with emphasis in quality assurance, planning, and management
Desirable: Some experienceor a sound knowledge of WHO's mandate and goals or in UN organizations/agencies, international institutions, health cluster partners, recognizedhumanitarian organizations or nongovernmental organizations.

Skills

• Demonstrated knowledge of pharmaceutical management, inventory management best practices, and considerations for the disposal of medical supplies.
• Excellent analytical and organizational skills, with proven ability to elaborate and implement a quality assurance program.
• Expert level familiarity with pharmaceutical products and requirements such as shelf-life, temperature requirements, and sensitivity to environmental factors such as light and humidity.
• Proven ability to design, develop, and implement a quality assurance program with improved oversight of health commodities
• Knowledge of WHO, the UN System or NGO work in the field of response relief and/or oftheir practices and procedures as related to the work.

WHO Competencies

WHO global Competencies model at http://www.who.int/employment/WHO_competencies_EN.pdf?ua=1

1. Teamwork
2. Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences
3. Communication
4. Ensuring the effective use of resources
5. Building and promoting partnerships across the organization and beyond

Use of Language Skills

Essential: Expert knowledge of English.
Desirable: Intermediate knowledge of Arabic or another UN.

REMUNERATION

WHO salaries for staff in the Professional category are calculated in US dollars. The remuneration for the above position comprises an annual base salary starting at USD 62,692 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance, as applicable), a variable post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station, and currently amounts to USD 3385 per month for the duty station indicated above. Other benefits include 30 days of annual leave, allowances for dependent family members, home leave, and an education grant for dependent children.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• This vacancy notice may be used to fill other similar positions at the same grade level

• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.

• A written test may be used as a form of screening.

• In the event that your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.

• Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to WHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and Manual.

• Staff members in other duty stations are encouraged to apply.

• For information on WHO's operations please visit: http://www.who.int.

• WHO is committed to workforce diversity.

• WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.

• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.

• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.

• WHO has a mobility policy which can be found at the following link: http://www.who.int/employment/en/. Candidates appointed to an international post with WHO are subject to mobility and may be assigned to any activity or duty station of the Organization throughout the world.

• Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Member States are particularly encouraged.

• For WHO General Service staff who do not meet the minimum educational qualifications, please see e-Manual III.4.1, para 220.