Global Surge Team Roster: Medical Logistician

The IRC’s Global Surge Team (GST) is a roster of esteemed and highly qualified humanitarian professionals who deploy on short notice to non-emergency and emergency contexts to support the IRC’s mission. Members of the GST provide specialist support where talent is most needed for short-term deployments of up to three months. The GST is a flexible employment opportunity for staff, requiring members to be available for deployments only 50% of the year (with opportunities for additional deployments if incumbent is interested).

Members of the GST who specialize in emergencies are deployed to support either existing country programs in their emergency response, or to initiate a new program in a crisis zone. The overall responsibility of the team is to design, develop, and manage the IRC’s on-site humanitarian response, allowing us to meet the immediate needs of the affected population rapidly and effectively.

Job Overview/Summary:

Emergency Health is a program area at the IRC that sits jointly within the Health Unit and the Emergency Unit, and encompasses public health, WASH and nutrition programming. With few predictable and effective health service providers in emergencies, there are major gaps in scale and scope to provide effective survival health interventions in emergencies to affected populations. With health and WASH comprising 2 of 3 IRC first priority interventions in emergencies, IRC plans to fill a niche in this field, branding itself as a fast, predictable and effective provider of critical health and WASH services in emergencies.

To implement effective medical logistics during IRC emergency health responses, in accordance with organizational, international, and donor standards; timely procurement and appropriate management of the medical supplies required to deliver essential emergency health services, as defined by the IRC’s Emergency Health Package, as well as the setup of IRC drug management tools/systems to ensure continuous and accurate oversight of health commodities.

The Medical Logistician (MedLog) will deploy to the field as an essential member of the joint Emergency Medical Team’s support structure in full collaboration with the IRC’s lead medical partner. The objective and primary responsibility of this role is to be the surgical teams focal point for all medical logistics support tasks and activities.

Major Responsibilities:

• Be prepared to be deployed within 72 hours of notification of assignment.

• Focal point for all Medical Logistics design & planning activities pre-deployment.

• Lead for all Medical Logistics tasks and activities supporting the Emergency Medical Team

• Focal point for reception of requests by Emergency Medical Team of medical commodities and equipment from stock and for new orders

• Responsible for communicating those requests to the support team in a timely manner.

• Coordinate (with) local staff to ensure a clean and safe operating environment for the Emergency Medical Team

• Provide logistical support for medical and surgical equipment disinfection and sterilization.

• Conduct routine planning activities with the Emergency Medical Team & E-SCC for daily activities.

• Engage with other humanitarian actors to acquire needed items and equipment, maintaining appropriate level of detail for standard reporting e.g. donations, in kind, loans.

• Receive all locally and internationally procured goods and coordinate their storage for use, including cold chain system setup and management if needed.

• Maintain accurate and comprehensive documentation for all procurement activities, including Purchase Requests, Purchase Orders, service and goods contracts, Delivery Reports, waybills.

• Promptly identify areas requiring immediate support and communicate these needs through the appropriate reporting hierarchy.

• Ensure stock records are kept up to date, share weekly report on stock movement, collaborate with Emergency Medical Team and E-SCC for forecasting estimates.

• Liaise with host government, UN/INGO partners, and any other relevant stakeholders to ensure smooth reception of international medical supply orders, with particular attention to efficient customs clearance

• Contribute to (drafting and review) donor proposals and budgets that include pharmaceutical/medical supply components, in close collaboration with Health Coordinator, IRC grants and finance staff

• Adapt, set up, and implement the IRC’s approved drug management tools/system, including training any relevant staff for support and/or handover

• Ensure quality of field pharmaceutical supply chain, including storage, export/import, distribution, medicines management within healthcare facilities; healthcare waste management, controlled drug management, etc.

• Coordinate with in-country health staff, and the Drug Management Technical Advisor as needed, to guarantee that IRC’s medicine selection, treatment protocols, and administration/dispensary guidance conform to national, international, and donor rules and regulations

• Identify medical logistics staff (both national and international), in coordination with Emergency Unit and HR, to support emergency health programming in order to ensure timely recruitment and training of staff and guarantee pharmaceutical compliance

• Support the IRC’s Health, Reproductive Health, Environmental Health & Nutrition Coordinators (emergency or country program) on any issues surrounding pharmaceuticals/medical commodities, as needed

• Prepare timely and detailed drug management reports for donors and IRC compliance

• Support set-up/construction of medical infrastructure (clinics, mobile teams, isolation facilities, maternity, etc.) in compliance with infection control standards in collaboration with IRC Health, Reproductive Health Environmental Health & Nutrition coordinators

• Perform any additional tasks as requested.

Job Requirements:

Education:

Master’s degree or equivalent professional experience in Logistics/Supply Chain with Health background, or Master’s degree in Pharmacy or equivalent professional experience with background in medical logistics

Work Experience:

• Minimum of 5 years’ management experience, including significant field operations experience supporting emergency activities

• Proven experience in a similar operational role e.g. EMT, MSF, ICRC

• Experience in medical procurement and in pharmaceutical supply chain management (procurement, import/export, warehousing, stock control, transport, distribution)

• Experience working in the NGO sector, within complex/large scale country programmes and in emergency response/humanitarian environments, especially Medical supply chain

• Experience in conducting pharmacy, supply chain or health assessments, particularly in an emergency context.

• Experience working with key institutional donors including ECHO, DFID, USAID/OFDA

• Experience working with a variety of agencies and coordination groups in a humanitarian setting

• Experience in capacity-building and supervision of logistic staff

• Experience in Public Health relating to Essential Medicines, National Drug Policies, Quality Assurance or clinical pharmacy, outbreak control, a plus

• Experience in set-up and construction of medical infrastructure, including during outbreaks, a plus

• Taken recent HEAT or similar training and/or proven experience working in insecure environments

Demonstrated Skills and Competencies:

• Ability to work in a team comprising multiple partners and/or medical volunteers from different sources

• Strong planning, management and decision making experience, with the ability to organize a substantial workload comprised of complex, diverse tasks and responsibilities.

• Strong practical knowledge of essential drugs, consumables and equipment

• Flexible work attitude: Be flexible and yet focused & reliable in an environment of changing demands

• Effective people and program management skills in acute emergency contexts: the ability to train, lead and manage staff productively under stressful circumstances.

Language Skills: Fluent English, Arabic would be an asset.

Desirables:

• Qualified Pharmacist

• Experience in construction & rehabilitation in above contexts.

• Proven recent experience as part of Rapid Deployment Surgical Unit team

• Knowledge and/or experience of Gaza and/or OPT including coordination with Israeli civil and/or military authorities.

Working Environment: Global position, with deployment depending on emergencies and country-level preparedness work

IRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability or any other characteristic protected by applicable law