Job Title:   Project Officer TB Management (4 Jobs)     

Organisation: Uganda Episcopal Conference (UEC)

Duty Station:  Kampala, Masaka, West Nile, Soroti, Uganda

Reports to: Regional Team Lead

About US:

The Uganda Episcopal Conference (UEC), the legal body of Catholic Bishops of Uganda with funding from Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) is implementing the Comprehensive HIV Epidemic Control project through FBO/PNFP health facilities in the seven CDC supported regions within Uganda. The project supports PNFP facilities in Masaka, Kampala, Mubende, Soroti, Hoima, West Nile and Rwenzori regions. Internally the project is known and shortened as FLASH– Faith Led Action to Sustain HIV Epidemic Control. The five-year project (Oct 2020- Sept 2025) is in its 3rd year of implementation.

Job Summary:  The Project Officer TB Management is charged with building PNFP sites’ capacity to offer high quality TB services including TB/HIV integration according to NTLP guidelines. Strengthen TB/HIV collaboration, TB diagnosis, treatment, prevention, recording and quality reporting as well as supporting national campaigns to end TB as well as supporting advanced HIV disease management.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Technical and Strategic Leadership

• Serves as the technical specialist for UEC FLASH project in all aspects of TB and Advanced HIV Disease management with emphasis on TB preventive therapy (TPT), TB treatment and its outcomes, TB infection control (TB IC), TB/HIV co-treatment, screening for TB and Advanced HIV Diseases including Cryptococcal Meningitis, CD4 testing at regional, district and facility level.
• Support TB case identification and successful treatment using different modalities including microscopy, TB LAM, GeneXpert and X-ray services.
• Supports implementation of surge strategies and campaigns including the 3-by-1 campaign, TPT catch up plans and the CAST TB campaign
• Provides expert-level guidance to health facility clinical and counseling teams in TB and Advanced HIV Disease Management
• Keeps current on all new developments in TB/AHDM in order to advise and/or lead health facilities on priorities and implementation approaches.
• Convenes technical meetings to review progress and discuss improvement initiatives.
• Supports the review of facility budgets and workplans to ensure they are responsive to the requirements to meet set targets and quality standards.
• Coordinate the implementation of community TB activities including contact tracing, X-ray outreaches, screening in hotspots, treatment follow-up and campaigns involving VHTs e.g., CAST TB
• Any other duty that may be assigned from time to time.

Capacity Building

• Conducts training, mentorship and technical support supervision regularly to health facility staff on aspects of TB and AHDM
• Development of Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) guides for facility teams to refer to.
• Conducts Continuous Medical Education (CME) sessions physically and virtually

Monitoring, Evaluation and Quality Improvement

• Working with the Strategic Information (SI) team, prepares and responds to ad-hoc reports and data calls on TB and AHDM.
• Supports recording and reporting of data in TB and AHDM. Participates in periodic data quality assessments (DQAs) and ensures that reported data is accurate, complete and timely as a good representation of the HIV care and treatment indicators.
• Supports the institution of data-driven CQI projects in TB and AHDM such as improvement of baseline CD4 testing, CrAg testing and utilization of TB LAM and GeneXpert.
• Foster a learning environment that facilitates cross learning and exchange of best practices, recommended strategies, and innovative interventions to improve health outcomes for people living with HIV (PLHIV) receiving services through the regional UEC UCMB facilities.
• Support active participation of clinical teams in QI collaboratives
• Support facility-level and UEC-level periodic data review meetings and performance monitoring with follow-up of agreed action plans for improvement
• Conducts facility-level assessments using the SIMS (Site Improvement Monitoring System) tool and supports facility teams to address identified gaps.
• Support External Quality Assurance (EQA) of CD4, TB and CrAg tests

Representation, Collaboration and Teamwork

• Works closely with District Health Management Teams (District TB and Leprosy Supervisors- DTLSs) and Regional TB and Leprosy Supervisors (RTLSs) to deliver quality TB services
• Represents UEC at district and regional performance review meetings
• Collaborates with other development partners like Global Fund, USAID and their supported projects like LPHS to support UEC facilities provide quality TB and AHDM services.
• Works with the Supply Chain and Laboratory advisors to ensure uninterrupted supplies of logistics for supported health facilities including CD4 test kits, TB reagents and kits, CrAg kits
• Works closely with other partners including the regional comprehensive mechanisms to optimize opportunities for cross sectoral integration and leveraging of resources across the different program components to guarantee client-centered services are prioritized and implemented across all supported health facilities

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

• The applicant must hold a Diploma in Clinical Medicine; a degree in Public Health or related field is an added advantage
• Three years of experience working with HIV, TB or related public health projects for is required.
• Knowledge in training, mentorship and technically sound
• Strategic decision making and leadership
• Teamwork, networking and good interpersonal skills

How to Apply:

All eligible and interested candidates should apply and attach their signed CVs, copies of certificates, degrees, and testimonials. Suitable candidates residing in highlighted regions are encouraged to apply. Applications indicating duty station applied for and job reference number should be directed to the address below;

The Secretary General

Uganda Catholic Secretariat

Plot 672, Hanlon Road, Nsambya Hill

P.O. Box 2886

Kampala. Uganda

Deadline: 21^st October 2022

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