Health Systems Strengthening Advisor (EpiC HIV Project)

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS – Health Systems Strengthening Advisor for EpiC-HIV Project

Project Description
FHI 360 is seeking applications for the position of Health Systems Strengthening Advisor for the Meeting
Targets and Maintaining Epidemic Control (EpiC) project in the Philippines. EpiC is a five-year global
project funded by the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the U.S. Agency for
International Development USAID) and is now on its second year of implementation. The project
provides strategic technical assistance (TA) and direct service delivery to break through barriers to 95-
95-95 goal of the country and promote self-reliant management of national HIV programs by improving
HIV case-finding, prevention, treatment programming and viral load (VL) suppression among key
populations (KPs) and priority populations (PPs).
In the Philippines, EpiC HIV has been working since October 2020 in Mega Manila to address critical gaps
and bottlenecks in the response to HIV among KPs in the Philippines and build capacity of local,
community based KP (Key Populations) organizations and work closely with the government of the
Philippines to deliver HIV services tailored to the needs of KPs. Now on its second year, EpiC HIV
Philippines will expand to new sites and increasingly work with implementing partners towards targeted
testing to increase HIV case finding among high-risk KPs.

Job Summary:
The HSS Technical Advisor will provide technical leadership and strategic inputs on project plans,
programs, and activities pertaining to specific cross cutting concerns and health systems strengthening
interventions in support of overall programmatic goals of the project. The HSS Technical Advisor will be
reporting to the Project Director but will be working in close collaboration with the Technical, SI and
Program sub-teams of EpiC-HIV. Within the EpiC HIV, s/he will be the lead technical adviser responsible
for all activities linking Leadership and Governance, Financing, Procurement and Supply Chain, Human
Resources for Health, Health Information System, Social and Behavior Change, among others to
sustainable service delivery of prevention, care and treatment services in Epic HIV supported sites. S/he
will coordinate with the Project Director to bring in new technical expertise and updated global
practices.
• Provide technical assistance to support the enhancement of health financing for HIV-AIDS in the
Philippines with special emphasis in supporting local government partners in securing and
managing resources for HIV-AIDS program implementation and health systems strengthening at
the local level, i.e., local budgeting, improve allocation of available finances considering the
implementation of RA 11223 or the UHC law
• Provide technical assistance to EpiC HIV partners, through development of tools and capacity
building activities to identify and improve utilization of social health insurance, i.e., Philhealth
and Indigent programs to reduce out of pocket costs; and explore opportunities for social
contracting and social enterprise among partner CBOs and local government units.
• Provide technical assistance to EpiC sites in establishing and strengthening HIV-AIDS service
delivery networks and effective governance for HIV-AIDS through development of Quality
assurance and improvement mechanisms that address identified systems barriers.
• Provide technical assistance on the development of customized plans and interventions to
enhance the capacity of Human Resources for Health at the local level to support
implementation of HIV-AIDS program considering HRH challenges at the time of the pandemic,
e.g., quality of health service provision, fast turn-over of HRH.
• Work closely with EpiC Strategic Information sub team to strengthen info systems among
partners and local sites, for improved program and service delivery
• Provide technical assistance to support Procurement and Supply Chain Management of HIV-AIDS
commodities at the local level
• Facilitate communication by answering implementing partner inquires and liaising with EpiC HIV
Philippines, government officials, and other local, regional, and international stakeholders in
her/his area of work.
• Organize meetings, trainings, and workshops in collaboration with Department of Health and
other development partners.
• Performs other duties, as assigned

Minimum Requirements
• Sensitivity to cultural differences and understanding of the political and ethical issues
surrounding public health issues among key populations, including people living with HIV in the
Philippines.
• Ability to manage and complete numerous tasks with a high degree of organization and limited
resources.
• Experience working with civil society organizations on health systems strengthening
• Experience in proactively identifying risk, addressing issues, and appropriately communicating
these to the project staff, FHI 360 HQ, and USAID as needed.
• Experience of establishing strong working relationships with colleagues from different
organizations and cultures.
• Ability to meet deadlines with strong attention to consistency, detail, and quality.
• Ability to travel within the Philippines, as needed
Required Education and Work Experience
• Master’s degree in Knowledge/Information Services, Communications, Education, Environment,
Health Systems, Behavioral, Life/Social Sciences, International Development, Human
Development, or related field required.
• Five (5) years relevant experience in public health particularly in health systems, governance,
financing, and policy with demonstrated ability to engage and coordinate key partners at both
the national and local level
• Demonstrates strong technical knowledge on Philippine health systems including governance,
health financing, human resource for health, procurement, and supply chain, among others
• Prior work experience on USAID funded programs with USAID PEPFAR funded programs
preferred; HIV/KP focused programs a plus.
• Prior work experience with coordination with DOH at national, regional, and local levels
• Native Tagalog speaker and good communication skills and good command in written and
spoken English.
• Previous experience in the Philippines is required. The position will be based in Manila,
Philippines and work out of the FHI 360 Country office. Preference is for Filipino national
candidates.
This job description summarizes the main duties of the job. It neither prescribes nor restricts the exact
tasks that may be assigned to carry out these duties. This document should not be construed in any way
to represent a contract of employment. Management reserves the right to review and revise this
document at any time.