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National Consultant/Expert for Programme Evaluation – (2207416)

Contractual Arrangement: External consultant
Contract Duration (Years, Months, Days): 3 months
Closing Date: Aug 25, 2022, 3:44:00 AM
Primary Location: Nepal-Kathmandu
Organization: SE_NEP WR Office, Nepal
Schedule: Part-time

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Purpose of consultancy

Evaluation of WHO support to strengthen Maternal Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response (MPDSR) in Nepal

Background

Nepal has successfully reduced the Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) in the past. Yet, MMR remains high, which was 186 / 100,000 live births in 2017 and ending preventable maternal mortality target is 95/100,000 live births by 2030. With the current ARR (pre-COVID), Nepal is on track to achieve the Ending preventable maternal mortality (EPMM) target. MDSR is an evidence based high impact strategy for reduction of maternal mortality. Therefore, WHO Nepal contributed to establishing maternal death surveillance and response mechanism, where perinatal death was added later.

In Nepal, review of maternal deaths started in the early nineties in a limited number of hospitals with the technical assistance from WHO. MPDR system was established in 1996 and later in 2015, it was scaled up as MPDSR in various districts across the country capturing deaths that occurred in the communities as well. Family Welfare Division with the technical and financial support from WHO and other partners implemented the Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response (MPDSR) in certain hospitals and communities.

The objective of the program is to eliminate preventable maternal and perinatal mortality by obtaining and using the information on each maternal and perinatal death to guide public health actions and monitor their impact. At present, WHO Nepal in collaboration with UNICEF and NHSSP has been providing support to carry out various activities in MPDSR implementation, especially orientations, trainings, review workshops, onsite coaching and online reporting. As per the information updated in 2021, MPDSR has been established in 15 districts and 93 hospitals in Nepal.

The major components of MPDSR can be outlined as identification and notification of maternal and perinatal deaths, review of deaths, analysis and interpretation of aggregated findings from reviews, and developing, implementing and monitoring of response actions at national and sub- national level. The Community MDSR includes review and response to all pregnancy-related deaths in the community through a verbal autopsy whereas the hospital MPDSR includes review of all pregnancy-related deaths as well as perinatal deaths. This review follows key ethical principles of confidentiality, anonymity, respect, and no name no blame. Further, it works toward achieving the goal of identifying avoidable factors and implement feasible actions to prevent avoidable maternal and perinatal mortality through different approaches and activities.

The assessment conducted by Family Welfare Division with the help of WHO and NTAG 2019 suggests various ways to improve the system functionalities, including the development of legal frameworks; revision of the guidelines as per the federated governance structure; expansion of MPDSR, capacity building of responsible teams, linkage with other information systems etc. Moreover, there are number of recommendations to improve system at sub-national level (Provincial, District and Local level).

This evaluation is designed to assess WHO’s contribution in establishing and implementing MPDSR in Nepal and identify the strategic approaches to support in the future, particularly considering the evolving context. The main audience of this evaluation would be key stakeholders who are responsible for managing the surveillance system and collaborating with WHO.

The evaluation will also recommend specific areas for future collaboration, programmatic and policy-related actions, institutional reforms and changes required in terms of project design, human resource, management practices etc

Objective:

The objective of this evaluation is to assess the extent to which MPDSR strategies, approaches and overall interventions have contributed during the implementation period to sustain the MPDSR in Nepal.

Duties and responsibilities:

• Desktop exercise to document MPDSR achievements to date – individual and institutional capacity building; system structures; quality and culture of use of surveillance results at the local or institutional level and programme level.
• Review MPDSR related documents such as guidelines, training packages, standard operating procedures etc.
• Assess to what extent achievements to date address and meet the needs of the programme, particularly in improving public health actions for safe motherhood programme.
• Assess current sector needs and alignment of the WHO’s priorities and activities, including operational approach and modalities.
• Review of relevant documents – SM roadmap, strategies, plans, progress reports, assessment reports etc. MPDSR documents, training reports
• Interviews with key informants – MoHP, WHO (HQ, SEARO & CO), health sector partners who are actively engaged in strengthening MPDSR and/or utilizing surveillance findings, Health Offices and HWs. For which, semi-structured interview questionnaire will be developed and administered and also use the virtual method.
• Site visits – the team will choose sites to visit and observe the MPDSR system in consultation with the WHO evaluation team
• Consultative and feedback collection meetings with Ministry of Health and Population, WHO team and key partners.

Deliverables

Deliverable 1: Inception report – detailed description of the methodology to answer the evaluation questions as well as the proposed source of information and data collection procedure and tools – Expected by: 15 October 2022

Deliverable 2: Draft evaluation report – to be discussed among the key stakeholders in order to provide comments – Expected by: 30 November 2022

Deliverable 3: Final evaluation report – executive summary, purpose of evaluations, methodology, findings, conclusions and recommendations (specific programmatic and policy related actions that could further guide the programme) – Expected by: 31 December 2022

Qualifications, experience, skills and languages

Educational Qualifications:

Essential: Master’s degree in public health, Social Science or relevant degree

Experience

Essential: At least 10 years of experience in design planning and execution and leading similar evaluations; In depth knowledge of the health surveillance systems particularly Maternal and child health; Data management and analysis skills to handle qualitative and quantitative data

Desirable: MPDSR assessment and evaluations experience

Skills/knowledge: Computer software application (MS Word, MS Excel, PowerPoint) and data analytical skills

Languages and level required (Basic/Intermediate/Advanced): Excellent knowledge of written and spoken English/Nepali

Location

On site: Kathmandu

Travel

Nearby districts/hospital in Kathmandu and Kavre. The travel dates will be fixed as and when required.

Remuneration and budget (travel costs are excluded):

Remuneration: Daily remuneration of NPR 11,750 – NPR 12,875 (based on the education and experience) for 45 days spread over three months
Expected duration of contract: 01 October to 31 December 2022.

Additional information

• This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar consultancies at the same level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• If your candidature is retained for interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/ diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
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• Applications from women are encouraged.
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• Consultants shall perform the work as independent contractors in a personal capacity, and not as a representative of any entity or authority. The execution of the work under a consultant contract does not create an employer/employee relationship between WHO and the Consultant.
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• This assignment is subject to local recruitment and will be filled by persons recruited in the local commuting area of the duty station/assignment location.