TB & HIV Consultancy Full-Time

EQUIP is recruiting a TB & HIV Consultancy.

EQUIP Overview

EQUIP (Extending Quality Improvement for HIV/AIDS) is a USAID funded program made up of a consortium of organizations, namely Right to Care, ANOVA Health, Kheth’Impilo, MaTCH and Partners in Hope. These African organizations have come together, under EQUIP to implement activities with USAID to co-create, co-design, co-invest and collaborate in the development, testing, and scaling of innovative approaches that address critical global health challenges with a particular emphasis on helping countries move to universal test and start for all those HIV
positive, and reaching their 90-90-90 treatment targets by 2020.

 Background

Ending TB and AIDS epidemic will require to work with civil society organizations and individual citizens  in a long-term effort. HIV and TB communities have much to offer each other by pooling resources. High rates of TB and HIV coinfection necessitate integrated approaches; this is crucial at the community level. People living with HIV should be an integral part of TB advocacy efforts.

In Mozambique there is a wide range set of interventions being implemented at community level for both, TB and HIV programs (e.g. DOTS program, index-case testing/contact tracing for HIV and TB patients in the community, key HIV prevention and adherence related messages, tracing of LTFU patients, etc.), but also there is a fragmented design and implementation of disease-specific activities.

EQUIP Mozambique is looking for a consultant to lead an external evaluation assessing some aspects of the integration of TB/HIV interventions at community and health facility levels, and propose a plan to leverage efforts of both programs which can be implemented at national level.

Goal of Consultancy

• Evaluate the integration of TB/HIV, in community-based activities related to TB or HIV;
• Assess barriers to the satisfactory implementation of current IPT delivery model(s);
• Investigate reasons for sub-optimal use of bacteriological tests for TB diagnosis, especially Xpert for HIV+ presumptive patients;
• Propose phased practical improvements based on findings and experiences in other settings

Deliverables

A. Upon selection the consultant, in collaboration with EQUIP medical manager, will develop and
submit within 2 calendar weeks an inception report containing:

• A chronogram of the consultancy, with a safety margin for contingencies;
• Methodological approach retained to answer the Terms of Reference, including elements of the data analysis plan;
• Profile and name of selected team members;
• Data collection tools.

Once validated a first payment corresponding to 20% of agreed total consultancy fees will be made

• Official documents from authorities to allow and facilitate interviews of staff and patients, as well as data collection in selected facilities will be obtained with the support of the EQUIP team. Approval of the ethic committee also.

B. Results of data collection activities and their analysis for each of the 4 provinces will be provided as they become available and each lead to payment of 10% of the consultancy fees after their validation.

C. The final report will synthetize information and data and provide practical and adapted recommendations to the situation found and context. A payment of 20% of fees will be done after delivery providing it contains all requested elements.

After review and improvement of the final report and its validation, a synthetic presentation to stakeholders will be conducted and the remaining payment of 20% will be made.

Period of Work

The total length of the consultancy is estimated at 90 work days and the initial draft final report must be submitted by end of August, in English or Portuguese (translation to the other language to be managed by EQUIP). One international travel in case a foreign-based consultant is selected is budgeted for.

The consultant can rely on a team of 2 investigators/interviewers/data collectors to be selected by him/her, with funding for 14 days in each of the selected provinces (4, 2 sites in each) and 7 days to finalize reporting.

Candidates need to send to equipmozambique@gmail.com

• Their CV, including publications and past evaluation works conducted;
• A cover letter stating how they answer to requirements for the evaluation, their earliest date of availability to start the work if selected and their daily fee;
• Deadline for applications is Sunday 21st of April.

Note: Documents containing background epidemic information and technical guidance as well as proposed timeline are available to interested candidates upon request to equipmozambique@gmail.com or in our office upon application: Rua do Gil Vicente, N°47 R/C; Bairro da Coop. Contact 84 897 7184.