Health Programme Coordinator – Ukraine

The Netherlands Refugee Foundation / Stichting Vluchteling (SV) is an emergency relief organization that worldwide supports partner organizations to assist displaced populations. In case of acute need, the Netherlands Refugee Foundation provides funding to international and national partners in order to provide direct assistance, such as shelter, medical care, clean drinking water and sanitation. Stichting Vluchteling communicates and informs the Dutch public on the humanitarian work our partners through our funding are implementing and the situation displaced people are facing.

Stichting Vluchteling currently has a diverse and enthusiastic team with around 40 employees, working predominately from The Hague. The working atmosphere is informal yet decisive, which is necessary to be able to react fast in case of emergencies.

In order to ensure the high quality of the implementation of the projects within emergency response in Ukraine, SV is looking for a:

Health Programme Coordinator – Ukraine

The health programme coordinator (HC) will be responsible to define and implement SV’s health response strategy in Ukraine, in close collaboration with the Ukraine Team Leader.

SV’s main focus for 2023 will be to enable local responders in their humanitarian relief work, therefore engagement with local organizations providing health services or facilitating the access to health care will be a priority. Given SV’s strategic focus on simplifying the model of care for NCD and MHPSS, the HC will also steer SV towards enhanced operationality with partners running NCD/MHPSS programming in Ukraine. Furthermore, the HC will oversee SV’s own project, which consists of the direct provision of medical supplies to medical actors in eastern and southern Ukraine.

The HC will ensure the programming is consistent with SV strategic objectives and health quality standards, which he/she will be responsible to monitor. He/she will monitor emerging health needs/gaps and access to healthcare for conflict affected population in Ukraine, guaranteeing pertinent health interventions, with existing partner or scoping for new ones.

The Ukraine team has four main areas of operations: 1. Rapid response mechanism to respond to emergency requests, 2. Medical supply, 3. Health care project in collaboration with MoH or local partners, 4. funding of international and local organizations

The HC will manage two staff, a Healthcare (supply) support Coordinator and national staff medical activity manger. As the program evolves and when evaluated necessary, it is possible that more team members are added, though the team is set to remain small but agile. Indeed, SV rather wants to facilitate national organizations in their work, rather than to grow into an additional implementing organization.

Place in the organization

The HC is part of the Ukraine unit within the Programs and Advocacy Department. The department currently consists of seven program employees who are each responsible for their own region, two employees for working on health (with a focus on NCD and MHPSS), two advocacy employees and one Humanitarian Access Advisor.

The Ukraine unit consists of a Team Leader, two programme officers, and a Humanitarian Access Advisor. The Ukraine Unit also works closely with the Internal Operations, Fundraising and Communication departments.

The post will be based in Odessa and the post holder will report to the Ukraine Team Leader.

What does the job entail?

Strategy

• Finalise and implement SV’s medical strategy for Ukraine
• Continue the assessment of health context and gaps in health care services

NCD/MH project

• Design, plan, implement, adapt and monitor a health care projects with MoH with a focus on NCD/MH.
• Identify advocacy opportunities related to NCD-MH in collaboration with the Medical Team Leader in the Hague
• Train, coach the national staff medical activity manager – programming (design and implementation of projects including monitoring).

Medical supply project

• Continue and oversee the roll-out of SV’s own medical supply programme into Eastern and Southern Ukraine
• Define selection criteria to evaluate eligibility of supply requests from health care providers.
• Train and coach the Healthcare support coordinator
• Support to health care support coordinator to streamline requests, define process, procedures and timelines from the demand side

Review project proposals

• Review of health care project proposals submitted by SV partners
• Participate in critical reflexion and feed-back process towards health care related funding requests
• Carry out health needs assessments and evaluations of medical partners as required

Monitoring and evaluation

• Continuous supervision of SV projects and monitoring health related activities from implementing partners, regularly evaluating progress of the outputs and targets.
• Participates in team meetings and contributes to regular sitrep for SV about health updates from the SV funded projects and contexts monitored
• Contribute to debate and implementation of SV’s ‘new’ modus operandi – from donor to ‘shared operationality’; from predominantly funding INGO’s into meaningful partnership with NGOs and increasingly Civil Society initiatives.

Funding

• Participate in the writing of proposals and reports for institutional and major donors

Representation

• Represent SV with authorities, partners and other NGOs on health issues, participate to cluster meeting and to meeting with relevant stakeholders with partners (Ex. MOH, other health actors) whenever possible

Miscellaneous

• Finalize and keep SV’s medical strategy up to date on the basis of the final Ukraine strategy document.

What do we expect from you?

• Medical or paramedical profile
• 5 years’ experience working in health programs in humanitarian settings
• Comprehensive knowledge and applied experience of medical programming in humanitarian settings
• Experience as (medical) coordinator highly desirable
• Excellent communication, negotiation, diplomatic and interpersonal skills
• Can do approach, with a willingness to contribute to the further set-up of SV in Ukraine
• Flexible, enthusiastic, creative, and enterprising are desirable qualities
• Excellent oral and written skills in English
• Demonstrable work experience in Ukraine or Ukraine is an advantage
• In addition, knowledge Ukrainian or Russian is an advantage
• Willingness to travel, including travel to conflict areas
• You endorse the goals and aims of the Refugee Foundation
• Your nationality, or a work permit, permits you to work in Ukraine and travel in Europe, SV is not in the position to apply for a work permit for this position

What do we offer you?

• A dynamic position in an enthusiastic organization of about 45 employees.
• A function with room for own initiative and new ideas
• An employment contract for initially twelve months, based predominantly out of Odessa, with travelling in the Ukraine and visits to The Hague
• Salary and working conditions appropriate for a non-profit organization, depending on education, experience and age.
• Start date is negotiable, but the preference would be 1 February 2023