Project Coordinator

Department

OUCRU - HN

Location

This position will be based in Nam Dinh City, and will require extensive travel within Nam Dinh, as well as some travel within Viet Nam to coordinate with our Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City units, and possibly internationally to attend conferences and workshops.

Hours of work

Full time Monday – Friday, 37.5 hours per week, extra hours may be required.

Tenure

Initially for 01 years, including a 02 month probation period, with possibility of extension based on annual performance appraisal and research approval

Reporting to

The Principal Investigator/Senior Epidemiologist, OUCRU Hanoi and Director of Training & Public Engagement, OUCRU-HCMC

Vacancy reference

JDHAN_0321_003

Background

The Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU) is a large-scale clinical and public health research unit, with sites offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in Vietnam, Jakarta in Indonesia and Kathmandu in Nepal. In Vietnam, we are hosted by the Hospital of Tropical Diseases (HTD) in Ho Chi Minh City, and the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases (NHTD) in Hanoi. OUCRU-Nepal is hosted by the Patan Academy of Health Sciences, and in Indonesia we exist in partnership with the Eijkman Institute as the Eijkman-Oxford Clinical Research Programme (EOCRU). As a Wellcome Trust Africa Asia Programme, we have received considerable support from the Wellcome Trust since our establishment in 1991.

OUCRU’s vision is to have local, regional and global impact on health by leading a locally driven research programme on infectious diseases in Southeast Asia. Priority is given to health issues important to the hospitals where we work, and to the countries as a whole where we operate: Vietnam, Indonesia and Nepal. All work is intended not only to benefit the patients seen daily at our host hospitals, but also to help improve patient care throughout Southeast Asia.

OUCRU employs approximately 320 people across Viet Nam and has an average annual budget of USD 12mil.

Please see more information on OUCRU website: www.oucru.org

Job summary

The main research interests for the Hanoi office are antimicrobial resistance and influenza. As part of our work on antimicrobial resistance we are partnering with the National Institute for Hygiene and Epidemiology to develop community-based interventions to change the way antibiotics are currently used, in order to reduce the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance. We are looking for a Project Manager with experience of managing Public Health projects, and working with different communities in Vietnam.

The Project Coordinator will coordinate activities related to three ongoing large-scale studies in Nam Dinh Province around antibiotic use in communities and among farmers and healthcare workers. They will coordinate the activities of two community-randomised trials, community-based interviews, and hopistal-based Antimicrobial Stewardship interventions. They will manage a small team of researchers in the Project Office in Nam Dinh City, and 35 fieldworkers across 8 districts in Nam Dinh Province. They will manage the implementation of data collection and intervention activities for community-based and facility-based projects aiming to develop solutions to tackle overuse of antibiotics. They will take the lead in managing relationships with local partners in the Nam Dinh CDC, Department of Health and sub-Department of Animal Health, as well as in health facilities and communities.

The Project Coordinator will work closely with other members of the research teams, and will coordinate with the OUCRU Clinical Trials Unit in Hanoi, partners at the National Institute for Hygiene and Epidemiology, local governmental departments and institutes in Viet Nam, and with the other national and international organisations.

They will be personable, well-organised, enthusiastic, and highly motivated. They will be able to work independently but also be a team player.

Key responsibilities and tasks

You will be leading a team in Nam Dinh to implement intervention and research activities under the guidance/mentorship of the Senior Epidemiologist based in OUCRU Hanoi. This involves the following:

· Manage a small team based in the Project office in Nam Dinh City, as well as 35 fieldworkers across 8 districts;

· Manage supervision of data collection and facilitation of community-based participatory action research groups;

· Liaise with the Clinical Trials Unit and researchers in Hanoi to implement and report on activities;

· Develop relationships with local government organizations to facilitate implementation;

· Develop relationships with local communities, farmers, community leaders and health facilities to facilitate implementation and design of research projects;

· Run workshops and discussions with high-level stakeholders, as well as local partners, health-workers, and community-members;

· Manage the logistics of delivering training sessions for health-workers, animal health-workers and data collectors linked to current research projects on antibiotic use and resistance;

· Liaise with OUCRU scientists for input into projects;

· Travel to districts to introduce and set up activities;

· Draft reports, research papers and presentations;

· Present project activities and represent OUCRU at national and local workshops;

· Manage and administer project-specific budgets;

In addition to meeting the minimum qualifications stated above, the ideal candidate for this position will be an experienced project/program manager who is passionate about improving the quality of life in their community and healtchcare settings.

Other Requirements

· Where the applicant is unfamiliar with the job they may be required to spend time learning the fundamental aspects of this discipline.

· Other tasks requested by Line Managers

Selection criteria

Essential

· Diploma, BSc, MSc, PhD preferably with background in community development, preventive medicine, public health/one health, natural resource management, or social science

· Experience of managing projects in communities, and desire to interact with and work with a range of local communities and healthcare workers

· Excellent communication and management skills in cross-cultural settings essential

· Diplomacy skills and evidence of working with government essential

· Project and budget management experience advantageous

· Experience managing teams and supervising others

Desirable

· Ability to work with a high degree of autonomy, and yet be a team player

· Good spoken and written in both English, Vietnamese

· Experience with research publications and media

· Highly organized

· Energetic and creative; open to new approaches and ideas