United States of America: Consultant :C4D Initiative to support Health interventions on Maternal and Newborn Care

Organization: UN Children's Fund
Country: United States of America
Closing date: 18 Sep 2013

A Communication for Development (C4D) initiative to support Health interventions on Maternal and Newborn CareTerms of Reference1. ContextDespite progress on child survival, mostly attributed to rapid expansion of basic public health services such as immunization and increased access to safe drinking water, nearly 6.9 million children died before the age of 5 years globally in 2011, approximately 43% of these deaths were among neonates. These neonatal deaths amounted to 3 million deaths worldwide. The greatest share of neonatal deaths is caused by preterm birth complications and complications during birth. The timing of maternal and perinatal deaths is clustered during birth and in the first subsequent week, the risk of neonatal death being highest in the first two days after delivery. Three- quarters of neonatal deaths happen in the first week after delivery and two-thirds of these occur in the first 24 hours. Most of the 3 million neonatal deaths occurring each year in the first four weeks of life take place in developing countries and most of these deaths occur at home. The greatest numbers and mortality rates occurred in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Neonatal mortality is increasingly important because the proportion of under-five deaths that occur during the neonatal period is increasing as under-five mortality declines.
Pneumonia, diarrhea, poor maternal health and newborn care practices continue to be the main killers of children worldwide, yet pneumonia and diarrhea can be prevented and treated when identified early, and healthy practices can be sustained through community-based and communication interventions. There are several preventive practices that can drastically reduce the number of child deaths, such as (a) seeking care if danger signs present during pregnancy; (b) preparing for birth; (c) using a skilled attendant at birth; (d) exclusively breastfeeding; and (e) being able to identify danger signs and access timely care, etc. (see Annex A).Communication for development interventions can play a major role in helping families to adopt preventive practices, identify danger signs and seek appropriate and timely care. Increasing knowledge and information about practices and services and supporting families and communities to adopt and maintain healthy behaviours are key C4D outcomes. Activities such as peers or health worker counseling, community dialogue, entertainment education, mass media and others complement service delivery interventions that focus on availability of services and commodities. In addition, community engagement strategies empower care-givers and families to adopt and sustain healthy practices and to better use health services and support .

Many families, especially from vulnerable groups, do not have access to basic services, nor are they equipped with skills and resources to adopt preventive practices. Wide variation exists in coverage of interventions that promote these preventive and curative measures, as well as in efforts to reach the most vulnerable populations. It is essential that the supply-side system strengthening be accompanied by strong demand creation in order to overcome the barriers to utilization of services. Barriers include a range of structural, environmental, service, and social and behavioural factors. UNICEF has recently undertaken a global literature review on C4D and new-born and child health and carried out formative and qualitative research in a number of countries in Africa to better understand the barriers to care-seeking for diarrhoea, pneumonia and malaria. The results of these studies have helped to build the evidence base on overcoming demand-side barriers to utilization and will be used to inform the demand creation and behaviour and social change communication of this initiative. It is critical to establish an environment that encourages individuals, families, and communities to act positively for their health and to access and advocate for quality health services.

Communication for promotion of critical practices for maternal, newborn and child care has been used widely. Evidence has shown that communication for development activities are essential to sustain individual behaviour and collective social changes, bringing the voices and the needs of the most disadvantaged and most vulnerable groups of the population to the public discussion, involving communities on the identification of health issues, searching for common solutions and negotiating quality care with service provider. This initiative seeks to work with countries that have engaged in A Promise Renewed and Call to Action for Child Survival work, launched in 2012 by the Governments of Ethiopia, India and the United States together with UNICEF to end all preventable child deaths. The focus will be on working with countries to sharpen/develop communication strategies for maternal, newborn care and child health in an integrated manner and based on the current evidence and using a socio-ecological perspective. Communication for Development: A critical intervention for child survivalCommunication for Development (C4D) is a systematic, planned, and evidence-based approach to promote positive and measurable behavioral and social change. C4D is both a strategy and an approach to engage communities and decision-makers at local, national, and regional levels, in dialogue toward promoting, developing, and implementing policies and programs that enhance the quality of life for all (McCall, 2011). The approaches that make up the C4D strategy include: (1) behavior change communication (BCC); (2) social mobilization (including strengthening an enabling media and communication environment); (3) communication for social change; and (4) advocacy. A central tenet of UNICEF is that C4D is most effective when combined with changes in the social-ecological environment within which children and families live. A mix of C4D interventions across the Socio-Ecological Model (SEM) levels should be designed to address the different dimensions of the problems, combining advocacy and other communication approaches as necessary.

1. The Action: Creating demand for services and uptake of healthy behavioursThe C4D and maternal and newborn initiative aims to support countries on the development, implementation and monitoring of technical sound, evidence-based and research-driven C4D strategies to strengthen the demand-side behavior and social change interventions. The work will be based on the recent recommendations of the Population Level Behaviour Change Evidence Summit, held by USAID and UNICEF in Washington, USA, in June 3rd and 4th, 2013. It also builds on existing interventions within the countries and regions and on the C4D and child health initiatives currently under implementation in six countries in East Asia and the Pacific regions. Tools and guidance developed for the latter are being used in other regions such us the Regional Communication Strategy Development Guide for Newborn Care and the Prevention and Control of Childhood Pneumonia and Diarrhoea in East Asia and the Pacific and the evidence review paper Applied C4D for Newborn Care and Control of Childhood Pneumonia and Diarrhea: A Literature Review of the Evidence of Impact on Child Survival.
   To attain the ultimate goal in line with the MDGs and A Promised Renewed goals regarding reducing maternal and neonatal mortality and accelerate achievement of MDG 4 and 5, this initiative will focus on strengthening the demand side, supporting countries on the development/sharpening and implementation of national C4D plans for maternal ,newborn and child health under the leadership of MoH.

2. Purpose of the ConsultancyA consultant is being sought to a) review and enhance the maternal and newborn component of the recently developed Regional Communication Strategy Development Guide for Newborn Care and the Prevention and Control of Childhood Pneumonia and Diarrhea in East Asia and the Pacific (transform it to a global guidance, including global C4D tools, frameworks and package of key family practices for maternal and child survival); b) facilitate two C4D and Child Survival workshops in the Western and Central Africa Region (WCAR) and the Eastern and Southern Africa Region (ESAR), involving selected countries; c) support selected African countries to develop/sharpen and implement theory-driven and evidence-based C4D country plans for child survival (focus on maternal, newborn and child health) and d) prepare a critical report and a power point presentation of the experience (opportunities; constraints, lessons and recommendations) to be used for advocacy at global and regional levels.The specific tasks include:

   • Review and enhance the maternal and newborn component of the recently developed Regional Communication Strategy Development Guide for Newborn Care and the Prevention and Control of Childhood Pneumonia and Diarrhea in East Asia and the Pacific (transform it into an UNICEF global guidance on C4D and Child Survival). The Guide will be shared and validated by the countries during the regional workshops.
   • Jointly with concerned Regional Office, facilitate and support the organization (develop agenda; prepare presentations and key documents, etc) of two regional C4D workshops in WCAR and ESAR with the participation of UNICEF staff and its partners.
   • Jointly with concerned Regional Office, support at least four (TBD) selected COs directly on the development/sharpen and implementation of C4D plans for child survival, focus on maternal and newborn health.
   • Prepare a critical report and a power point presentation of the experience (opportunities; constraints, lessons and recommendations) to be shared with UNICEF and its partners at global and regional levels.

Deliverables and Deadlines 1) C4D Global Guide on Maternal, Newborn and Child Health developed and validated by UNICEF staff and partners by 15 November 2013;
2) Two C4D regional workshops in WCAR and ESAR with the participation of UNICEF staff and its partners facilitated and key resources developed/identified and shared by 31 January, 2014;3) At least four (TBD) selected COs directly supported on the development and implementation of C4D plans for child survival, focus on maternal and newborn health by 15 April. 4) Prepare a critical report and a power point presentation of the experience (opportunities; constraints, lessons and recommendations) to be shared with UNICEF and its partners at global and regional levels by 30 April.

Payment Schedule:Payment of fees will be made in four installments as follows:Installment I: Upon acceptance by the C4D and Health Teams the first deliverable.Installment II: Upon acceptance by the C4D and Health Teams of the second and fourth deliverables.Installment III: Upon acceptance by the C4D and Health Teams of the third deliverable.Installment IV: Upon acceptance by the C4D and Health Teams of the fourth deliverable.Breakdown of TravelIt is anticipated that the consultant will need to make the following trips:• One or more trips to NYC for a maximum of 2 days apiece;• Two trips to WCAR and ESAR for a maximum of 8 days each;• Several possible trips to country office (if requested by the regional and country offices).Time Frame30 September – 15 June (The consultant is expected to complete this assignment in 50 working days during the period specified above).Duty Station: The consultant can work from remote, however, trips to NY and African Region will be required. It is also possible that the consultant might be asked to visit one or more country offices during the period of this consultancy.Qualifications• Advanced university degree in communication, social sciences and/or related fields.• 10-15 years of professional experience in social/international development.• Demonstrated experience with developing community- and national-level communication strategies for behavior and social change.• Expertise in communication, public health and other child survival areas.• Expertise in monitoring and evaluation.• Experience in quantitative and statistical analysis as well as qualitative research methods and the development of indicators and measurement tools. • Knowledge of UNICEF’s areas of work.• Knowledge in relation to the areas of human rights, gender equality, social change and inclusive development a plus.• Excellent writing skills in the English language and working knowledge of French.

Annex ATable 1: Key maternal-newborn interventions and behaviours to focus on

Antenatal interventions Intra-partum interventions Postnatal interventionsPromotion of routine antenatal care Tetanus toxoid vaccinationNutritional counsellingIron/folate supplementation Maternal health educationPromotion of institutional deliveriesBirth and neonatal care preparednessPMTCTIntermittent preventive treatment (IPT) for malariaInsecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs) Provision of safe delivery kit for clean deliveryPromotion of clean delivery practices Presence at delivery and assessment of newborn Support for temperature management (dry, wrap and skin-to-skin)Misoprostol for PPH preventionEnsure proper cord careTake birth weightPromotion of immediate breastfeedingMonitor postpartum condition; stay at least 2 hours to make sure mother and neonate are stableProvide vitamin A to mother after birth Referrals for emergency obstetric careAssist in early identification of developmental delays or impairments and refer for servicesPMTCT Provide cord care Recognition of neonatal danger signs Assess for sepsisKangaroo mother care/thermoregulationAssess newborn weightPromotion of exclusive breastfeedingReferrals of sick newborns Provision of ITNsCounsel parent on thermal control, infant feeding (exclusive breastfeeding) and danger signs Refer for vaccination Refer for birth registrationAssist in early identification of developmental delays or impairments and refer for servicesPMTCTAssess mother for signs of infections, mastitisFamily planning

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1. Legal Status

The individual engaged by UNICEF under this contract as a consultant or individual contractors (the “Contractor”) is engaged in a personal capacity and not as representatives of a Government or of any other entity external to the United Nations. The Contractor is neither a "staff member" under the Staff Regulations of the United Nations and UNICEF policies and procedures nor an "official" for the purpose of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, 1946. The Contractor may, however, be afforded the status of "Experts on Mission" in the sense of Section 22 of Article VI of the Convention and the Contractor is required by UNICEF to travel in order to fulfill the requirements of this contract, the Contractor may be issued a United Nations Certificate in accordance with Section 26 of Article VII of the Convention.

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1. Travel

If UNICEF determines that the Contractor needs to travel in order to perform this contract, that travel shall be specified in the contract and the Contractor’s travel costs shall be set out in the contract, on the following basis: (a) UNICEF will pay for travel in economy class via the most direct and economical route; provided however that in exceptional circumstances, such as for medical reasons, travel in business class may be approved by UNICEF on a case-by-case basis.
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The Contractor is fully responsible for arranging, at his or her own expense, such life, health and other forms of insurance covering the term of this contract as he or she considers appropriate taking into account, among other things, the requirements of paragraph 5 above. The Contractor is not eligible to participate in the life or health insurance schemes available to UNICEF and United Nations staff members. The responsibility of UNICEF and the United Nations is limited solely to the payment of compensation under the conditions described in paragraph 7 below.

1. Service incurred death, injury or illness

If the Contractor is travelling with UNICEF’s prior approval and at UNICEF's expense in order to perform his or her obligations under this contract, or is performing his or her obligations under this contract in a UNICEF or United Nations office with UNICEF’s approval, the Contractor (or his or her dependents as appropriate), shall be entitled to compensation from UNICEF in the event of death, injury or illness attributable to the fact that the Contractor was travelling with UNICEF’s prior approval and at UNICEF's expense in order to perform his or her obligations under this contractor, or was performing his or her obligations under this contract in a UNICEF or United Nations office with UNICEF’s approval. Such compensation will be paid through a third party insurance provider retained by UNICEF and shall be capped at the amounts set out in the Administrative Instruction on Individual Consultants and Contractors. Under no circumstances will UNICEF be liable for any other or greater payments to the Contractor (or his or her dependents as appropriate).

1. Arbitration

(a) Any dispute arising out of or, in connection with, this contract shall be resolved through amicable negotiation between the parties.
(b) If the parties are not able to reach agreement after attempting amicable negotiation for a period of thirty (30) days after one party has notified the other of such a dispute, either party may submit the matter to arbitration in accordance with the UNCITRAL procedures within fifteen (15) days thereafter. If neither party submits the matter for arbitration within the specified time the dispute will be deemed resolved to the full satisfaction of both parties. Such arbitration shall take place in New York before a single arbitrator agreed to by both parties; provided however that should the parties be unable to agree on a single arbitrator within thirty days of the request for arbitration, the arbitrator shall be designated by the United Nations Legal Counsel. The decision rendered in the arbitration shall constitute final adjudication of the dispute.

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1. Termination of Contract

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How to apply:

Qualified candidates are requested to submit a cover letter, CV , and P11 (the P11 template can be downloaded from http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/index_53129.html) to pdconsultants@unicef.org with subject line “Consultant, C4D Initiative to support Health interventions on Maternal and Newborn Care ” by 18 September 2013. Please indicate your ability, availability and daily rate to undertake the terms of reference above.

Joint applications from two or more individuals are not accepted.