Junior National- Field Research Manager (ID & NCD) 

TA #2: Establishing a Delivery Unit to Implement the Universal Health Coverage Roadmap in Punjab

Programme Overview

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.

Position Summary

The main objective of the Delivery Unit is to monitor progress of the UHC roadmap which will be developed through TA under E4H and to build institutional capacities for evidence-based decision-making and accountability. It will define key performance indicators for the South, North, and Central districts in Punjab, monitor them regularly, and analyse data to report regularly in stocktakes.

(The Unit will be providing support to the Secretary, the CM and CEO Health (Muzaffargarh and Lahore) to hold accountability through regular performance stocktakes)

   Sub-objectives

1. To work on the UHC SCI in Punjab, focusing on Primary Health Care (PHC).
2. To coordinate and liaise with the STTA UHC implementation roadmap team to develop a roadmap aligned with the Department's 5-year HSRP and CM’s health sector priorities.
3. To liaise with the Data Governance embedded TA team (including DHIS II and EMR) to ensure the Delivery Unit can identify areas of data quality improvement.
4. To liaise with international development partners engaged in all UHC-related activities to create synergies and avoid duplication of efforts.
5. To build the capacity of the Department to use data for evidence-based decision-making, performance and accountability.

Phase 1: In the first phase, the Delivery Unit is expected to establish a solid foundational strategy aligned with the UHC roadmap and provincial health policies. This may include, among other tasks:

1. Develop the TORs of the Delivery Unit
2. Notify the Delivery Unit
3. Conduct a kick-off workshop to align the Delivery Unit’s strategic objectives with the UHC roadmap
4. Hold a workshop with development partners and technical experts to get feedback
5. Establish an understanding of clear goals, responsibilities, and timelines
6. Create specific, actionable and timed implementation plans for each of the four proxy areas of UHC implementation aligned with the UHC roadmap

Checkpoint(s)

• Conduct a kick-off workshop to align the Delivery Unit’s strategic objectives with the UHC roadmap
• Establish an understanding of clear goals, responsibilities, and timelines for the Delivery Unit
• Approval of TORs and action plan by the Secretary

Phase 2: In the second phase, the Delivery Unit is expected to execute the action plan and ensure coordination among various stakeholders and decision-makers, which is essential for UHC implementation and decision-making.

• Implement a monitoring system to track progress against the UHC roadmap using indicators identified through a rigorous consultative process between the P&SHD and the CM office.
• Report the data to the CM’s health roadmap focal points and present data in quarterly stocktakes.
• Utilise data analytics to provide the Secretary with insightful, actionable feedback for Department’s internal monthly review (CEOs, Medical Superintendent, DC IRMNCH&N Conferences).
• Oversight on UHC implementation trends, challenges, and opportunities such as:

Set up an integrated data dashboard connected to data flowing into HISDU that collates real-time data.

Monitor the progress in relevant data indicators in the province and develop KPI to highlight equity gaps through disaggregation of data by region (North, Centre & South), districts, poverty and other possible equity indicators.

• Provide the Secretary with policy briefs, talking points, and advocacy briefs presenting the need for financial and non-financial resources. This will enable the Secretary to advocate for sustained investment in UHC implementation.
• Focal points within the Department, specifically from HISDU, will be identified for capacity building to carry out the Unit's functions, especially the capacity to analyse data to facilitate evidence-based decision-making.
• The analytics, policy briefs, reports etc developed by the Unit will be disseminated on regular basis on the Government forums such as CEOs, Medical Superintendent, DCs IRMNCH&N Conferences and any other learning events organised by Departments.
• Any opportunity to disaggregate the data by districts, poverty, and other equity measures?
• The Unit will identify any possible areas where they can help cross validate data collected by the MERL component of this Programme such as Health Facility Assessment findings. Conversely, the Unit’s deliverables such as policy briefs and analytics can be reviewed by the Programme’s MERL team. This collaborative effort will further help identify areas for implementation research.

Responsibilities

The Field Research Manager (ID & NCD) will work to achieve the following:

1. Monthly Snapshots
2. QPR

Timeline and Days

The level of effort (LOE) for the role is 264 working days, from January 2025 – December 2025.

Requirement

Technical Expertise

• Report to the Associate (ID & NCD) and be accountable to the Team Manager, contributing to the effective implementation of the roadmap approach.
• Collaborate with the supervisory Associate and Team Manager to align analysis and reporting with the overall Delivery Unit’s objectives.
• Support the Delivery Unit team with the surveillance and monitoring of infectious diseases, including tracking outbreaks, analysing trends, and assessing the impact on public health at district level.
• Assist the Unit in developing and implementing strategies for preventing and controlling infectious diseases, including vaccination programmes, infection control measures, and public health campaigns and health promotion and education campaigns to raise awareness about the importance of healthy lifestyles, early detection, and managing non-communicable diseases among the general population and at-risk groups at district level.
• Coordinating responses to infectious disease outbreaks and collaborating with healthcare providers, public health agencies, and other stakeholders to contain the spread of disease and mitigate its impact at district level.
• Supporting the Delivery unit and District Health Authority team execute strategies to engage with communities to raise awareness about infectious diseases, promote healthy behaviours, and encourage participation in prevention and control efforts at district level.
• Monitoring the prevalence, incidence, and trends of non-communicable diseases within the population, analysing data to identify risk factors and vulnerable populations.
• Assist in implementing the prevention programmes and interventions aimed at reducing the risk factors associated with non-communicable diseases.
• Assistance in developing and implementing screening programmes for early detection and facilitating early intervention and treatment at district level.
• Build the institutional capacity by providing hands-on training to the staff working at District Health Authorities to collect, monitor and analyse data for effective management of Infectious and non-communicable diseases.
• Serve as focal points for coordination with provincial-level teams and other embedded TA professionals.

Competencies

• BA/B.Sc. (Hons) in Social Sciences, Public Health, Development Studies, or Public Policy.
• 2-7 years relevant experience in any well-reputed health national or international organisation OR junior-level years of relevant experience.