Consultant, Operations Research on PHC Financing at Options Consultancy Services Limited

Options Consultancy Services Limited was established in 1992 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marie Stopes International. We are a consultancy organisation providing technical and management expertise in the health and social sectors to governments and international development partners to transform the health of women and children.

We are recruiting to fill the position of:

Job Title: Consultant, Operations Research on PHC Financing

Location: Nigeria
Department: Technical Department

Programme Description

• Evidence for Action–Mama Ye (E4A–Mama Ye) is a programme managed by Options Consultancy Services and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (The Foundation) to improve reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health (RMNCAH) outcomes through a combined focus on evidence, advocacy and accountability in several sub-Saharan African countries.
• E4A-Mama Ye currently has programme offices in Nigeria, and Kenya, and also provides technical assistance for health financing in other countries which have received investment through the Global Financing Facility. The current investment will run from July 2019 to May 2022 In Nigeria, we support coalitions (e.g., State Level Accountability Mechanisms, Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response Committees, and others) to have the capacity to advocate for progress on Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH) nationally and through focused work in Lagos, Niger and Bauchi states. The focus of the current investment from The Foundation is to build the sustainability of our approaches so that coalitions are empowered with the knowledge and tools to operate independently and are supported to identify priorities, and develop strategies to achieve progress in those priorities.

The Position

• Options seeks a consultant to conduct operations research on PHC financing that will identify sources of financing and decision-making processes that influence resource management at the PHC level.
• The research will inform stakeholders in government, partners health professional and CSO advocates on opportunities for increased efficiency and transparency of funding to PHCs for government decision making.
• The purpose of this research is to provide information to the Nigerian government, health professional bodies, and CSO advocates on how to ensure more accountable funding of PHCs. The research will focus on answering the following questions:
  • What budget lines/programmes should be used to track Primary Health Care? What are the sources and funding flows for each of these?
  • Through what schemes do PHCs receive resources (e.g. Free MNCH, DRF, BHCPF, other?) and how do these co-exist? What are the differences between urban/rural facilities in receiving these funds?
  • How do facilities manage funding to provide quality services (e.g. who manages the funding, how do they make decisions on how to spend these resources in a way that improves quality of care? what investments do they prioritise? What autonomy do they have on how to spend the resources they receive or is this determined by government? What about other resources such as commodities and equipment) and what guides this process?
  • How do PHC facilities track and report back on funding utilisation and service delivery performance?
  • For a sample of facilities, what funding is expected v. disbursed to the PHC facility level and how does this affect decision making and the ability to provide services? Where does the funding expected by the facility go?
  • What prevents facilities from accessing government funds/resources that they are entitled to?
  • How are community members engaged in decision making on the way in which funds are spent or resources (e.g. drugs) are distributed?
• The consultant will be expected to propose a methodology for approval, prior to commencing field work. This should include iterative data collection, ensuring that findings from the desk review feed into interview protocols for KIIs, FGDs, and areas of observation for facility visits; feeding learnings back into the E4A programme throughout the assignment.

Requirements
To succeed in this role, you will have:

• Experience carrying out similar research focused on health financing in the health sector
• Solid understanding of the health sector, including the relationship between national, sub-national and local government levels
• Extensive experience working within Nigeria health system especially at primary health care level
• Strong research and analytical skills with experience designing research protocols and data collection tools.

Other Information:

• Options is an equal opportunities employer
• Our organisation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and post holders to share this commitment.
• We seek people who are pro-choice, energetic and enthusiastic about Options’ vision.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Click here for more information (PDF)