Technical Consultant-Independent Contractor, Medical Liquid Oxygen System

TECHNICAL CONSULTANT-INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR, MEDICAL LIQUID OXYGEN SYSTEM

Location: Kinshasa DRC

Country Programs-DRC

Number of positions: 1

Nature of employment: This is a consulting role reporting directly to CHAI Program Manager, supported by the Ministry of Health and technical refer to CHAI Global Engineering Advisor.

Duration of Assignment: 6 months Contract

Start Date: June 2024

Overview

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, Inc. (CHAI) is a global health organization committed to our mission of saving lives and reducing the burden of disease in low-and middle-income countries. We work at the invitation of governments to support them and the private sector to create and sustain high-quality health systems.

CHAI was founded in 2002 in response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic with the goal of dramatically reducing the price of life-saving drugs and increasing access to these medicines in the countries with the highest burden of the disease. Over the following two decades, CHAI has expanded its focus. Today, along with HIV, we work in conjunction with our partners to prevent and treat infectious diseases such as COVID-19, malaria, tuberculosis, and hepatitis. Our work has also expanded into cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and other non-communicable diseases, and we work to accelerate the rollout of lifesaving vaccines, reduce maternal and child mortality, combat chronic malnutrition, and increase access to assistive technology. We are investing in horizontal approaches to strengthen health systems through programs in human resources for health, digital health, and health financing. With each new and innovative program, our strategy is grounded in maximizing sustainable impact at scale, ensuring that governments lead the solutions, that programs are designed to scale nationally, and learnings are shared globally.

At CHAI, our people are our greatest asset, and none of this work would be possible without their talent, time, dedication and passion for our mission and values. We are a highly diverse team of enthusiastic individuals across 40 countries with a broad range of skillsets and life experiences. CHAI is deeply grounded in the countries we work in, with majority of our staff based in program countries. Learn more about our exciting work: https://www.clintonhealthaccess.org

CHAI is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and is committed to providing an environment of fairness, and mutual respect where all applicants have access to equal employment opportunities. CHAI values diversity and inclusion and recognizes that our mission is best advanced by the leadership and contributions of people with diverse experience, backgrounds, and culture.

Program Overview

CHAI’s Essential Medicines team is supporting intensified efforts at both global and country levels to plan, resource, and implement effective interventions for scaling-up access to diagnostics and treatments for these conditions. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Essential Medicines team has expanded its oxygen work to over 20 countries, supporting pandemic response efforts while strengthening long-term oxygen systems planning. Improving health outcomes for vulnerable populations in these countries requires comprehensive investment in oxygen systems, including, but not limited to, increasing oxygen generation capacity, making distribution of oxygen more widespread and reliable, education and mentorship of health care workers in identification and care for patients in need of oxygen treatment, procuring medical devices and associated technologies to facilitate safe oxygen provision, and monitoring the effect of interventions on population health and access to oxygen. CHAI is supporting the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo in strengthening its medical oxygen infrastructure and market shaping by optimizing supply chains, improving governance of the oxygen ecosystem, building capacity of non-clinical and clinical staff across the oxygen ecosystem, and providing evidence for policy and action through advanced analytics. To foster healthcare reforms across Oxygen Access, CHAI also supports strengthening of health systems in the country to improve availability, accessibility, affordability, acceptability of broader public healthcare services in the country.

Position Overview

CHAI DRC seeks a dynamic and highly motivated technical consultant with outstanding organizational, analytical, communication and technical expertise (in the field of Medical Liquid Oxygen systems). The candidate must be able to function independently and provide project oversight for all medical oxygen infrastructure system design, procurement, installation, testing, commissioning, handover according to quality standards. The Consultant will also supervise and monitor the oxygen infrastructure contracted suppliers/vendors to meet deliverables, working closely with the government Biomed Unit, Oxygen Stakeholders, and CHAI Oxygen team. The consultant must have strong quantitative and analytical skills, excellent verbal, and written communication skills, be self-directed, good understanding of International Organization for Standardization (IOS/ISO) standards, Stringent Regulatory Authorities (SRA) quality assurance and quality control systems, excellent project management skills, and be committed to excellence. The interested candidate must be able to function with independently and flexibly.

The consultant must be a highly motivated individual with outstanding organizational, analytical, communication and technical skills (in the field of Cryogenic Medical Liquid Oxygen systems). The candidate must be able to function independently, have a deep personal commitment to producing results, and have a demonstrated ability to lead challenging and complex projects. CHAI places great value on relevant personal qualities: resourcefulness, entrepreneurialism, tenacity, independence, humility, passion for the mission, and work ethic.

Responsibilities include:

Coordination and Technical Guidance: 

1. Review technical proposals of vendors and conduct technical evaluations.
2. Provide oversight, technical support and ensure compliance of VIE systems, manifolds and medical gas pipeline systems installation and commissioning with national and international quality standards at the Kinshasa University Clinic, Kinshasa, DRC.
3. Provide onsite technical support the operationalization and maintenance of VIE systems including Liquid oxygen tanks, vaporizers, monitoring devices, manifolds, and medical gas pipeline systems.
4. Development and review of operational SOPs for medical oxygen system operations supported GEMEng and the CHAI team.
5. Develop necessary SOPs for the operations of VIE systems, manifold, and medical gas pipeline systems.
6. Conduct capacity building trainings and mentorships to enhance the knowledge and skills of biomedical engineers and technicians.
7. Ensure effective coordination and open, organized communication, information sharing, and tracking pending items between biomedical engineers/technicians, electrical engineers, architects, and other project stakeholders (i.e., MoH staff, donor, and relevant implementing partners).
8. Facilitate and coordinate project meetings across all project sites.
9. Organize, track, and support a wide variety of assessment, repair, system improvement, and training projects on all project sites.
10. Carry out any additional responsibilities assigned by management.

Project Scheduling and Tracking: 

1. Track, schedule and manage activities of vendors, support staff and stakeholders across multiple oxygen access projects.
2. Ensuring that projects are appropriately staffed, and that vendors work on agreed schedule and plan.
3. Ensure that projects are planned and vendors staff sites efficiently and do not allow competing commitments to override ongoing projects.

Monitoring and Progress Controls:

1. Prepare monthly progress reports: progress of works based on the established schedules and plans, encountered problems, solutions, planning of activities for the following week, etc.
2. Consolidated monthly/quarterly progress reports.

Stakeholder Management:

1. Establish solid working relationship with the government, including other stakeholders and partners.
2. Manage communications and ensure stakeholders are aware of project activities, progress, exceptions and can accept handover products.
3. Advise stakeholders on issues that may impact the achievement of their outcomes (including issues of sustainability and post project requirements such as maintenance)
4. Manage the information flows between the project(s) and the government.
5. Liaise with technical committee and end users.

Professional Experience 

A minimum of 5 to 8 years relevant experience in managing or advising ideally on the financing, design, specifications, sourcing, and procurement, installation and commissioning, storage and distribution, maintenance, and use of equipment (and systems) used for generating, storing, and transporting medical oxygen, particularly in Low-Middle-Income-Countries (LMIC) with:

1. Experience/expertise in design and specification of medical oxygen equipment and systems in the public and/or private health sector.
2. Experience/expertise in oxygen storage and distribution systems.
3. Experience/expertise in installation, assembly, and commissioning of oxygen equipment to medical Liquid Oxygen (mLOX), Vacuum Insulated Evaporator (VIE) System and pressure swing adsorption (PSA) plants, with required infrastructure needs, maintenance, and servicing.
4. Experience with oxygen telemetry
5. A good understanding of the global and/or regional oxygen ecosystem, applicable national and international laws, and recognized quality standards
6. Good writing and analytical skills

Advantageous Experience: 

1. Experience/expertise in the sourcing and procurement of critical oxygen-storage and delivery systems (LOX/VIE systems, LOX tanks, PSA plants, ancillary devices, and equipment) complemented by a sound knowledge of the legal, regulatory, and tendering process involved with the large-scale deployment of medical oxygen infrastructure.
2. Experience/expertise in advising on financing of oxygen systems, including total cost of ownership.
3. Knowledge of the national and regional health system

Qualifications  

1. Bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering; Electrical engineering, Mechanical engineering/hospital engineering or health technology
2. Graduate degree (MSc. /MBA equivalent) preferred, which can be compensated by additional four years of professional experience  – Experience working within the African region.
3. Strong ability to review and interpret AutoCAD documents and tendering documents such as equipment P&IDs, PFDs, DWG, BOQs, layout drawings, procurement contracts.
4. Previous experience working with Liquid Oxygen (LOX) tanks, PSA plants, air compressors or other related mechanical equipment is preferred.
5. Project management experience is preferred.
6. Ability to multi-task on several projects at once and meet project deadlines.
7. Strong communication skills and an interest in collaborating with all project stakeholders.
8. Excellent interpersonal skills with ability to interact with diverse individuals across multicultural teams.

Desirable 

1. Oxygen industry experience highly preferred
2. Professional training in various medical oxygen plant design, management of oxygen storage hub, procurement, installation/assembly, and maintenance of
3. Experience in overall system design and delivery of medical oxygen services in hospital.
4. Ability to work as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
5. Experience in implementing strategic activities especially related to sustainable financing for Government uptake.

Language Competencies: Must have good written and spoken French and English. 

Application: 

Interested applicants should submit their application letter, detailed Curriculum Vitae, and certified copies of qualifications through emailing: drcrecruitment@clintonhealthaccess.org 

All individuals should submit their applications no later than June, 30th 2024. Short-listed individuals will be contacted to schedule an interview. We regret that we will only be able to respond to those applicants selected for interviews. 
Please note: Due to CHAI’s collaborative relationship with the Government of DRC, we are unable to accept applications from individuals currently working for the government.