Terms of Reference (TOR)

TITLE:                         Data Analyst

REPORTS TO:           Sr. MEL Advisor – BHF Pathfinder

PROJECTS:                 Building Healthy Families (BHF) – Pakistan

LOCATION:               Karachi, Sindh

Overview of USAID/Pakistan Building Healthy Families (BHF):

Building Healthy Families BHF is a USAID-funded five-year activity, with Pathfinder International as the lead implementer in Pakistan, aiming to improve population health outcomes in Pakistan through stronger primary health care systems and encouraging uptake and continuation of voluntary Family Planning (FP)/ Reproductive Maternal Newborn Child Health (RMNCH) services. Using a market development and health systems strengthening approach, BHF will support the Government of Pakistan (GoP) in Sindh & Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province and the private sector institutions to achieve three results:

1. Increase the capacity of the government and private health institutions to lead resilient, responsive FP/MNCH systems;
2. Improve utilization of quality FP/RMNCH products and services; and
3. Empower men and youth to communicate about, demand, and use essential services

One of the key intermediate results of BHF is the “capacity of government institutions strengthened to scale up FP/RH/MNCH high-impact practices”. One such activity includes strengthening the Community Midwife–Management Information System (CMW-MIS) and Lady Health Worker–MIS (LHW-MIS) in Sindh for improved health services data management and utilization which will be sustainable once the BHF activities/intervention ends. Overall, strengthening the RMNCH MISs in Sindh involves enhancing the software/technology, capacity strengthening of RMNCH MIS teams in data accuracy, visibility, and reporting, and updating CMW profiles/data entry in the CMW-MIS through Technical Assistance (TA). By organizing these initiatives cohesively, the RMNCH MIS in Sindh stands prepared to elevate data-driven governance, ultimately fostering improved healthcare delivery and societal well-being.

Purpose of TA:

Providing TA through skilled data analysts is pivotal in empowering the RMNCH institute and its MIS team to leverage data effectively for decision-making and problem-solving. The primary objective of the TA is to strengthen and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the CMW-MIS and LHW-MIS. Specifically, the data analyst will be responsible for capacity strengthening of all the existing MIS staff, data cleaning, and data entry of up to 15 batches of CMWs. Initially, a key focus will be on entering CMW data into the CMW-MIS. This effort is designed to update CMW profiles and produce heat maps according to their current location. Another crucial aspect involves delivering comprehensive training to the existing MIS staff, including all staff who are overseeing CMW-MIS and LHW-MIS. This will empower the workforce with updated skills and knowledge, optimizing the utilization of diverse information systems within healthcare management.

To achieve the aforementioned goal, BHF will provide Short-Term Technical Assistance (STTA) for Health System Strengthening (HSS) to fulfill all the specified tasks during its tenure (nine months). Additionally, the same STTA will conduct capacity building for RMNCH staff, ensuring their capability to independently handle these tasks in the future.

Scope of work for the Data Analyst/STTA:

1. Review, and maintain large datasets of CMW-MIS and LHW-MIS
2. Data validation of the reported data in both the MISs through joint field monitoring with the relevant RMNCH MIS/M&E team
3. Perform data quality assessment (DQA) to ensure data accuracy, data completeness, and data consistency.
4. Update profiles of all CMW batches (15) into the CMW-MIS through data entry of 15 CMW batches
5. Identify trends, patterns, and anomalies within datasets (CMW and LHW).
6. Support, plan, and conduct comprehensive training of RMNCH MIS staff, including CMW-MIS and LHW-MIS.
7. Prepare comprehensive reports to communicate findings effectively.
8. Work closely with cross-functional teams in RMNCH to understand data requirements.
9. Manage and optimize databases for efficient data retrieval and analysis.
10. Conduct capacity-strengthening for RMNCH MIS staff to ensure their independent handling of tasks in the future.
11. Present analytical results clearly and understandably. Generate actionable insights from the existing databases/datasets (LHW-MIS and CMW-MIS).

Deliverables:

1. Report on the training of RMNCH MIS staff, including CMW-MIS and LHW-MIS, including list of personnel trained, description of training, and outcome.
2. Documented procedures for data analysis of both the MISs, for all within the RMNCH MIS office.
3. Updated profiles of all CMW batches (15) in the CMW-MIS.
4. Final report providing an overview of capacity-strengthening for RMNCH MIS staff with recommendations for the way forward.

Reporting:

The Data Analyst will be reporting to Sr. MEL Advisor BHF and closely working and collaborating with RMNCH MIS staff based in Karachi, Sindh

Level of Effort: The expected duration of the assignment is nine (09) months with a total LOE (Level of Effort) of 195 days distributed as a maximum of 23 working days per month.

Required expertise:

The individual must be able to perform each essential duty and responsibility satisfactorily. The qualifications listed below are representative of the required knowledge, skills, and/or abilities needed to perform the principal duties:

1. Master's degree in Statistics / Information Technology / Computer Sciences or related discipline required
2. Minimum of eight (8) years of experience in a relevant field (data analysis, capacity strengthening, conducting training and generating data reports)
3. Experience with the health/development sector will be a must
4. Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
5. Excellent skills in data analytics, interpretation of data/findings, and report writing in English
6. Experience with LHW MIS, and CMW MIS is preferred.
7. Attention to detail and accuracy in data interpretation.

Note: The scope of work can be changed as per the advice of the donor