The Pre-service Education Technical Advisor will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of   Pre-Service Education in the 11 regions of USAID Afya yangu and Zanzibar. He/she will provide technical leadership and oversight for pre-service education activities for the USAID Afya Yangu-RMNCAH project aiming to improve the knowledge and skills of PSE students in RMNCAH. Under the leadership of the Technical Director, Technical Advisor pre-service education will work closely with MOH national, regional, Health Training Intuitions (HTI) and Zonal Health Resource Centres to design and implement effective pre-service education improvement strategies. In consultation with Project Leadership and Jhpiego’s technical experts, the Technical Advisor for pre-service education will provide strategic and programmatic leadership to facilitate the implementation of evidence-based, competency-based education.

Job Grade: 9.  This position is open to Tanzanians only.

Technical Roles

• Provide technical oversight, and strategic direction and ensure appropriate support for the implementation of program activities in pre-service education
• Develop new/review evidence-based pre-service clinical training materials, job aids, curricula, supervisory systems and other training materials needed for implementation of USAID Afya yangu-RMNCAH to meet the needs of the Government of Tanzania
• Provide mentoring and capacity building at the individual and organizational level in specific areas of pre-service expertise including but not limited to:
  • Reproductive health and family planning
  • Maternal health, including basic and comprehensive emergency obstetric care
  • Newborn health, including essential newborn care
  • Child Health, Immunization and Nutrition
  • Pre-service education and training
  • Infection prevention and control
• Support “training of trainer” sessions, site strengthening, in-service and/or pre-service education, follow-up and supportive supervision to project-supported health training institutions (HTIs) and health facilities, as required by project and MOH
• Coordinate continuous quality improvement (CQI) assessments and follow-up, advocacy, demand creation, policy support, capacity-building and M&E across supported health training institutions (HTIs)
• Lead the formulation of approaches for scale-up of pre-service education and training for nurse-midwives and other health cadres.
• Actively participate in all Technical Advisory Group Meetings, and represent the project in professional forums by participating and sharing best practices in these meetings
• Analyze potential pre-service education strategies within the context of the USAID Afya yangu-RMNCAH and advise as necessary, to policymakers, funding agencies, and/or program staff
• Work with health care providers, local authorities, community members and program team members to identify and address [clinical, community-based] service delivery issues that impede access to care
• Formulate and test sustainable solutions to [training, service delivery] gaps, utilizing cross-cutting approaches such as performance and quality improvement and in-service training/pre-service education
• Advocate with national, district and community-level health institutions to raise awareness about their role in improving education outcomes in pre-service education and health outcomes in RMNCAH
• Guide MOH, professional associations, and other national stakeholders in the revision/development of evidenced-based standards for competency in RMNCAH services
• Contribute to the implementation of professional development for local healthcare providers
• Collaborate with all local stakeholders and implementing partners, especially the Ministry of Health and other US and international implementing partners, in order to ensure that all activities conform to the requirements and regulations
• Document and maintain an inventory of successful tools and approaches for pre-service education
• Contribute to the development of business proposals, technical reports and publications as they relate to pre-service education
• Author and co-author abstracts and presentations for journals and conference
• Document successes, lessons learned and challenges in implementation as well as reports of project activities and results to the program and donor, including routine quarterly and annual reports and other reporting requirements as requested

Coordination Roles:

• Supervise technical officer pre-service education
• Maintain excellent relationships with MOH, USAID, HTIs, ZHRCs and in-country stakeholders
• Work with project regional leads for smooth communication with regional, and districts authorities and HTIs
• Work with M&E staff to design, and implement a plan to track data/results related to pre-service education
• Provide technical leadership to the development of the project’s strategic plan, work plan, and program monitoring, in close collaboration with [MOH, USAID, HTIs/ZHRCs and other stakeholders]
• Ensure timely review of the scope of works, budgets and requisitions for implementation of pre-service education activities
• Prepare PSE reports and project reports
• Oversee data collection, analysis and development of conclusions and recommendations to further strengthen program implementation
• Ensure availability of resources/facilitate the procurement of equipment and supplies required for project implementation

• A medical degree (Doctor or Nursing) or Master’s in Public Health
• At least 6 years’ experience in pre-service education
• At least 6 years’ experience in managing donor-funded projects and in the design and implementation of pre-service education
• Qualification as a “master trainer”; experience training health workers on clinical aspects related to RMNCAH
• Experience in building capacity at individual and organizational levels;
• Skill in at least two or more of the following technical areas: strengthening service delivery programs, pre-service education, performance and continuous quality improvement, monitoring and evaluation
• Experience with a mix of practical technical skills in pre-service necessary for strengthening RMNCAH service delivery
• The ability to liaise with senior MOH officials, HTIs, ZHRCs and USAID
• Demonstrated in-depth understanding of Tanzania’s healthcare system, particularly the public health system, experience living and working in Tanzania preferred
• Strong oral and written communication and presentations skills in Swahili and English; working knowledge in the local language is preferred but not essential; Strong skills in word processing and Excel spreadsheets and other Microsoft office;
• Familiarity with USAID or other foreign government donors’ administrative, management and reporting procedures and systems;
• Proven track record managing a project team composed of several technical experts and fostering teamwork
• Ability to coach, mentor and develop technical capacity in national programs and technical staff in the areas of pre-service
• Excellent written, presentation, communication and organizational skills in both English and Swahili
• Ability to travel up to 70% time