TORs: Public Health Expert with experience in Health Security

KP TA – 10: Establish a functional governance mechanism to oversee the execution of National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS) recommendations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Programme

Evidence for Health (E4H) is a Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO)-funded programme aimed at strengthening Pakistan's healthcare system, thereby decreasing the burden of illness and saving lives. E4H provides technical assistance (TA) to the Federal, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), and Punjab governments, and is being implemented by Palladium along with Oxford Policy Management (OPM).

Through its flexible, embedded, and demand-driven model, E4H supports the government to achieve a resilient health system that is prepared for health emergencies, responsive to the latest evidence, and delivers equitable, quality, and efficient healthcare services. Specifically, E4H delivers TA across three outputs:

Output 1: Strengthened integrated health security, with a focus on preparing and responding to health emergencies, including pandemics.

Output 2: Strengthened evidence-based decision-making to drive health sector performance and accountability.

Output 3: Improved implementation of Universal Health Coverage, with a focus on ending preventable deaths.

Problem Statement

• KP is vulnerable to climate change impacts, epidemics, and pandemics and frequently experiences natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods.
• Inadequate inter-sectoral and intra-sectoral coordination hampers the health system's efficiency and responsiveness to natural and man-made disasters, epidemics, and pandemics and resilience in addressing health risks.
• Over the decades, different development initiatives have introduced verticality and fragmentations, leading to siloed actions and disconnects within different parts of the system, resulting in governance challenges. Additionally, several issues stem from disjointed International Health Regulations (IHR) coordination mechanism in the province.
• These challenges have resulted in inefficiencies, disjointed responses, a lack of adaptable management during emergencies and outbreaks, and insufficient proactive response measures.
• Furthermore, this has resulted in insufficient policy and planning actions within the health system and across sectors, ultimately compromising the resilience and efficiency of the response efforts.

Objectives

The TA aims to assess the existing KP health security arrangement at the provincial and district level. It will adopt governance recommendations from NAPHS and then operationalise a unified governance and coordination mechanism to address inefficiencies in the health system and enhance policy and programme planning, making it more efficient and responsive. The ultimate objective is to establish a resilient health system that can effectively and efficiently prepare for and respond to emergencies, epidemics, pandemics, and the health effects of climate change. 

Scope of Work and Methodology

As a part of this TA assignment, the team will cover the following scope of work:

1. A draft situational assessment report has been developed to assess the formal and informal health security arrangements in the province. The consultants are expected to use the desk review, global and regional best practices, national lessons learned, and stakeholder consultations to update the report and provide clear recommendations for establishing a governance mechanism. The report should be concise and direct.
2. Based on the recommendations, the team is expected to develop a draft governance mechanism by leveraging insights from existing draft reports provided and the E4H IHR thematic lead. The proposed governance mechanism should be clear and concise, detailing roles, composition, terms of reference, frequency, and other relevant elements, as well as outlining linkages with decision-making mechanisms. The proposed governance mechanism should be agreed with government stakeholders before finalization.
3. Once finalized, the consultant team will assist the relevant unit in notifying the proposed governance mechanism. This support includes helping the unit prepare the necessary documents to facilitate a smooth and efficient notification process.
4. After notification, the team will organize the first meeting of the IHR governance mechanism and train the government focal point to effectively convene future meetings.

Timeline and LOE

The level of effort for the role is 20 working days, from August - October 2024.

Requirement

Technical Expertise

• Knowledge of disease surveillance systems, including the ability to design, implement, and manage surveillance programs to monitor the emergence and spread of infectious diseases.
• Experience in planning and executing strategies for responding to health emergencies, such as pandemics and natural disasters.
• Knowledge of global health issues, international health regulations, and best practices.
• Knowledge of strengthening healthcare systems to improve their resilience and capacity to respond to health security threats.
• Proficiency in managing and analysing data and using information systems to support decision-making during health emergencies.

Competencies

• Proficiency in analysing disease patterns, tracking outbreaks, conducting epidemiological investigations to understand the spread of infectious diseases and their determinants, and developing control strategies.
• The capacity to collaborate with various government agencies, non-governmental organisations, and international partners to ensure a coordinated and effective response to health security threats.
• Knowledge of public health policy development and advocacy to influence decision-makers, shape health security policies, and ensure the allocation of resources for preparedness and response efforts.
• Skilled in collaborating with various government agencies, non-governmental organisations, and international partners to ensure a coordinated and effective response to health security threats.

 Deliverables

• Support in developing a crisp situation assessment of current health security infrastructure, its governance mechanisms, challenges, and recommendations.
• Support in formulating a report of consultations with public sector stakeholders and development partners working in health security.
• Lead the development of a governance mechanism for health security, finalised after consultations with relevant public sector stakeholders and donors/development partners.
• Provide embedded support to facilitate the convening of the first meeting of the governance mechanism. 
• Support in drafting SOPs and developing M&E linkages to ensure seamless governance mechanism operation at program and policy levels.