Duration: 16 January 2019 till 15 April 2019
The Consultant will work under the overall guidance of the direct supervision of the UNFPA Midwifery Specialist.
The purpose of this consultancy will be to strengthen and align the Bangladesh midwifery implementation plan with UNFPA's Global Midwifery Strategy 2018-2030, focusing on midwifery faculty support and development, and accreditation of midwifery programs.
The first International Confederation of Midwifery (ICM) standard direct-entry midwife educational program commenced in Bangladesh in December 2012. Midwifery was embedded in nursing. Faculty are nurses and were shared between nursing and midwifery. Since then a cohort of dedicated midwifery faculty has been identified.
In early Dec 2018 the new UNFPA Global Midwifery Strategy 2018-2030 was released. A gap analysis done identified clinical education, education quality, faculty development, standardized testing, coordination and midwifery institution accreditation in need of additional strengthening.
Currently there is a growing group of dedicated midwifery faculty in Bangladesh with a wide range of knowledge, skill levels and competency, with little involvement in clinical education. In preparation for the revised diploma and new BSc curriculum, a structured, detailed, cohesive syllabi, and faculty development plan, including clinical education will be developed. The faculty development plan will include clinical education. As the institutions that provide midwifery education also provide nursing, the accreditation process for midwifery educational institutions will be aligned with nursing accreditation. All of these will be informed by documents such as ICM's global standards for midwifery education and WHO's midwifery educator core competencies. A coordination process with IPs working around education in Bangladesh will be structured and initiated to avoid duplication of work and support overall education quality. Finally, the next midwifery licensure assessment is expected in Feb 2019. Providing technical assistance to the working committee will be necessary.
Scope of work:
Under the direct supervision of the UNFPA Midwifery Specialist the consultant will undertake the following tasks:
- Outline syllabi for the revised Diploma and new BSc curriculums.
- Finalize a faculty development plan to include clinical education and submit for approval.
- Develop an accreditation process for midwifery educational institutions aligned with nursing accreditation and the ICM's process, and include the clinical sites for the Bangladesh context and submit for approval.
- Create and initiate a coordination process with IPs working around education in Bangladesh for improved communication and coordination of activities.
- Provide liberal technical assistance to the standardized testing working committee.
The consultant is expected to deliver the below output:
- Faculty development plan – to be submitted via email to the UNFPA Midwifery Specialist.
- Coordination process and platform - to be presented to Implementing Partners and submitted via email to the UNFPA Midwifery Specialist.
- Accreditation Guideline - to be submitted via email to the UNFPA Midwifery Specialist.
Outline of Syllabus for revised diploma and new BSc curriculum to be submitted via email to the Midwifery Specialist.
- Regular meetings to be held with the UNFPA team at a minimum of biweekly, for input on drafts of the above work as needed.
- Meetings with Bangladesh Nursing and Midwifery Council (BNMC) representatives for curriculum revision and syllabi as scheduled.
- Bimonthly meetings with WHO collaboration and subcommittee group on accreditation.
The consultant will develop a work plan for the assigned activities and present to midwifery specialist within the first two weeks of the consultancy and provide weekly updates including a rough plan for the following week, aligning with UNFPA Midwifery Specialist's needs.
Travel is expected to be minimal. Travel expenses and DSA will be covered by UNFPA, in accordance to UNFPA policies.
Requirements:
- Minimum education level: Masters level in relevant public health/development field
- Years of experience: Minimum of 4 years in development work
- Knowledge of the Bangladesh context.
- Familiarity with midwifery, and current midwifery educational issues, particularly in Bangladesh
- Excellent proposal writing ability
- Excellent communications and interpersonal skills; proven organisational skills, including time management, and ability to meet deadlines
- Experience in working with UN/UNFPA is an asset
- Field of specialty: Midwifery and Public health programs
- Fluency in written and spoken English.
- The consultant will be hired as an International Consultant.
HOW TO APPLY
Applicants with the required qualifications and experience should submit a copy of curriculum vitae (CV) and a completed UN P11 form (http://Bangladesh.unfpa.org/en/vacancies/un-p11-personal-history-form) and the names and contact information of three references.
Please Send your application electronically to dedicated email inbox of munier@unfpa.org
For further details, please refer the attached detailed VAs and also at UNFPA website: https://www.unfpa.org/jobs
Note: Only those candidates in who meet all qualifications and experience will be contacted for further consideration. Kindly note that incomplete applications will be automatically disqualified.