Location: Dakar, Senegal
ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
UNHCR has a highly mobile, global workforce which comprises around 11,000 staff members and nearly 5,000 colleagues on flexible working arrangements serving in over 460 locations in 130 countries. Some 40% or more of UNHCR¿s workforce is posted in difficult and remote duty stations where working and living conditions can be challenging. Some locations are impacted by security risks and ongoing conflicts and ensuring their safety and wellbeing is of paramount importance.
The Staff Health and Welfare Service (SHWS) is a part of the Division of Human Resources (DHR) responsible for ensuring that the workforce of UNHCR has a safe and healthy work environment, in the interests of good functioning and productivity. Occupational health focuses on enhancing and maintaining:
- the health of people at work, ensuring they operate safely; and
- the organisational effectiveness of UNHCR by providing expert advice to management.
The Medical Section includes some 15 professional and support staff providing occupational medical services and support to UNHCR staff. The Senior Medical Officer reports to the Chief, Medical Section, and will have supervisory responsibilities.
In addition to work with individual staff and teams in direct person-to-person service, the Section is responsible for overall implementation of the UNHCR¿s Duty of Care commitments as well as for the development of relevant policy documents that promote staff health and psychosocial welfare.
FUNCTIONAL STATEMENT
Accountability
- The promotion, prevention and protection of the health and safety of UNHCR staff is in line with DHR¿s People strategy.
- Matters affecting the health, safety and welfare of persons at work are considered and reported on.
- Holistic approach is taken to staff health and psychosocial welfare.
- Health risk assessment of high risk environments, mitigation measures are developed.
Responsibility
- Visit the workplace and perform health risk assessments of duty stations, high risk environments. Advise on the provision of safe and healthy conditions.
- Develop and manage emergency response to complex situations.
- Provide/successfully run travel medical services for staff on official travel/missions/emergency deployments.
- Provide occupational health and safety management.
- Develop, implement and supervise projects and programs in line with the SH&Ws and Regional Strategic Objectives.
- Provide support with relevant UNHCR polices and standing administrative instructions, as well as promote compliance with relevant health and safety legislation.
- Manage resources: request, justify and monitor annual budget for the region, manage own human resources under his/her supervision.
- Provide first aid and emergency services in response to accidents occurring in the workplace.
- Provide surge capacity to the corporate and UN System.
Authority
- Recommend, facilitate and support emergency medical evacuations of national and international staff and dependents.
- Assess and clear the centres for medical evacuations for UNHCR workforce and family members.
- Review, assess and take decisions about work accommodations, fitness for work, and mobility that are based on individualized medical risk assessments.
- Implement and monitor existing health and psychosocial welfare policies.
- Access to confidential staff medical data.
ESSENTIAL MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
- Diploma of Medical Doctor (MD).
- Minimum 8 years of clinical practice as a Medical Doctor/ Practitioner of which at least 1-2 years should be in an international organization and/or in hardship duty stations.
- Experience in occupational health and safety and/or travel medicine and/or tropical and infectious disease, and /or emergency medicine, minimum 2 years¿ experience.
- Project design and management experience (education and competency to successfully lead and direct projects).minimum 2 years¿ experience.
- Training in project management and minimum 2 years¿ experience in implementing health related projects.
- Certification in OHS.
- Certification in emergency medicine (PHTLS, ACLS or equivalent).
- Supervisory experience of other health personnel.
- Excellent communication, presentation and drafting skills.
- Fluency in English.
- Fluency in English and French (for the position in Dakar, Senegal).
DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS & COMPETENCIES
- Advance Degree in occupational health/public health/community medicine/family medicine/international health.
- Experience in managing employee assistance programs like HIV or substance abuse or other wellbeing programmes.
- Demonstrated leadership and team building skills.
- Good knowledge of French, Spanish and/or Arabic is an asset.
Position Competencies
C001L3 - Accountability Level 3
C002L3 - Teamwork & Collaboration Level 3
C003L3 - Communication Level 3
C004L3 - Commitment to Continuous Learning Level 3
C005L3 - Client & Result Orientation Level 3
C006L3 - Organizational Awareness Level 3
M003L3 - Judgement and Decision Making Level 3
M004L3 - Strategic Planning and Vision Level 3
M006L3 - Managing Resources Level 3
X001L3 - Analytical Thinking Level 3
X002L3 - Innovation and Creativity Level 3
X005L3 - Planning and Organizing Level 3
Additional Information
The UNHCR workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages and opinions. UNHCR seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. Applications are encouraged from all qualified candidates without distinction on grounds of race, colour, sex, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity.
Additional Information
For those people applying for High Risk Duty Stations, we strongly encourage colleagues to read the country specific security and welfare profiles which can be found on the Intranet under Support Services - Duty of Care (https://intranet.unhcr.org/en/support-services/duty-of-care.html). These profiles have been specifically designed to answer some of the key questions (on security conditions, medical provisions, staff welfare, living and working conditions) potential applicants might have before deciding to apply. Ensuring staff are better informed is part of the increased attention UNHCR is paying to Duty of Care. This project is still in the pilot phase, and as such some of the information leaflets are being produced as we speak and might not be available yet. They will be soon, so keep checking.
Closing Date
Please note that the closing date for all vacancies in the Add.3 to March 2018 Compendium is Thursday 12 July 2018 (midnight Geneva time).
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