Médecins sans frontières

Health Information System Specialist

14/07/2010 - 03/09/2010

Offres d'emploi à Bruxelles

Background

The Medical Information Network for Operational Support (MINOS) is the future system for management of MSF-OCB’s medical-operational data. It is a network composed of interconnected databases, accessed via web browsers, that allow for improved data entry, transmission, storage, and analysis. The approach to information management that this project takes is a significant departure from our existing system. It holds great potential for OCB and its implementation is a significant priority for the organization. It is also of significant interest to other sections and organizations (e.g. WHO, CDC, UNHCR, Harvard University, and others), who are watching this project develop with great interest. This post offers an opportunity to play a significant role in an evolution of humanitarian medical data management.
This project is at the field testing phase, will shortly be ready for implementation, and it needs continued public health guidance. The system architecture has been laid out, and the routines to run it are being written, but the public health framework on which it is based and which will guide its future development needs further elaboration. As well, the IT specialists will need guidance in the choices they have to make in finishing development.

Principle tasks and responsibilities

• Provide public health support to IT developers – MINOS still requires public health support for the development of its functionality (e.g. determination of alert thresholds, indicator development, feedback system for users, etc.)
• Supervise the implementation in the field – The field will need assistance in migrating from their current systems as well as oversight to ensure that this happens in a timely manner.
• Provide technical support for the field’s use of system and work with the IT unit on modification of system in response to user feedback.
• Coordinate with external organizations – All MSF sections need indicators and case definitions. For OCB, these have been well, if not yet fully, developed for MINOS. To facilitate future intersectional interaction, it would be best for everyone if we shared as many indicators and definitions as possible. To this end, an international working group has been proposed. As well, MINOS has been presented to organizations outside of MSF, whose involvement in the development of standards would be to our benefit.
• Integrate the existing system of Excel files – Another medical data specialist is working improving the implementation of this system. As the implementation of MINOS will go more smoothly if the existing system is well implemented, this post will require close interaction with Marcel and his work.
• Write a user friendly teach yourself guide for MINOS
• Create and implement a training program for medical field staff for use of MINOS in project management and disease surveillance. The long term success of this system requires that users are comfortable in its use.
• Write a medical data policy that lays out the procedures for the encoding, storage, transmission, analysis, and reporting of the field’s medical-operational data.
• Analyze the global medical data set from OCB operations – MINOS will replace our fragmented and scattered file based system with a unified network that will centralize our data in an accessible way. This will allow for an overview of all OCB’s operational activities.

The Medical Department framework

The Medical Department is composed of polyvalent medical staff working in operational cells and experts working outside these cells. The water and sanitation unit and the people in charge of the medical expatriate pool management also form part of the Department.
The experts cover the following domains: epidemiology, nutrition, public health, malaria, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, mental health, laboratory, pharmacy, medical logistics, operational research, water & sanitation, reproductive health, medical anthropology.

Candidate profile

• Public Health training – MPH or equivalent. Specifically, and most importantly, familiarity with medical data used in humanitarian project monitoring and epidemiologic surveillance. Health information system skills an advantage, but not an absolute requirement
• Medical training – Ideally a physician, but may also be a nurse. Other post-graduate training in the health sciences considered on a case by case basis.
• Experience – This post will require understanding of the organization, operations culture, field projects, and institutional culture of a medical humanitarian organization, as well as familiarity with work in developing countries. Work experience in such an organization would be required, previous work with MSF is preferable.
• Despite its rather sophisticated use of information technology, this post does not require extensive computer skills. However, a certain degree of computer skills will be required (e.g. some facility with Excel)
• Independence – as this project is of great importance but cannot be supervised closely by higher levels of management, an ability to work independently is of great importance.
• Collaboration – as this post will require working closely with the IT unit, the medical data specialist, and participation in an international working group, an ability to work as part of a team is required.
• Language – Fluency and the ability to write in English will be necessary. Competency in French is a plus.

Conditions

• Full-time one year contract, starting as soon as possible
• Reporting to the medical director through the operational research coordinator.
• Based in Brussels office with periodic field visits

Applications to be sent before September 3th 2010 to MSF, Caroline Maes, Medical department, Dupréstreet, 94, 1090 Brussels
caroline.maes@brussels.msf.org