Consultant, Enhancing Preparedness and Response to Measles, Rubella, and Congenital Rubella Syndrome Outbreaks in Countries of the Americas Region

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is the world’s largest humanitarian network, with 191 member National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. IFRC uses the Triple R – response, resilience and respect – to deliver on Strategy 2030. IFRC responds to disasters and crises, ensuring timely, coordinated and locally led humanitarian action. IFRC supports its members in building community resilience in the areas of climate and environment, health and wellbeing, and migration and displacement. IFRC promotes respect for our fundamental principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality, including in our work on values, power and inclusion. The IFRC focuses throughout on our core mandate – our raison d’être – of strategic and operational coordination, humanitarian diplomacy, National Society development, and accountability.

IFRC is led by its Secretary General and has its Headquarters in Geneva and five regional offices in Africa (Nairobi); the Americas (Panama); Asia Pacific (Kuala Lumpur); Europe (Budapest); and MENA (Beirut) as well as representation offices, service centres and delegations across the globe.

Due to the recent global financial cutbacks in public health and immunization activities, technical support to many countries has been withdrawn thereby seriously threatening the planning and implementation of vaccination campaigns in 2025 and 2026. As a consequence, a partnership between the IFRC and the Measles and Rubella Partnership (M&RP) seeks to establish a Measles & Rubella Country Platform (M&R Country Platform) to overcome this gap in technical support to the Ministries of Health. The M&R Country Platform serves to advance the goals of the Immunization Agenda 2030 and is committed to reducing measles and rubella morbidity and mortality by supporting countries to implement the Measles and Rubella Strategic Framework 2021- 2030.

This consultancy aims to develop and maintain critical activities to strengthen national rapid response, surveillance, and immunization efforts across countries in the region of the Americas, in order to enhance preparedness and response to outbreaks of measles, rubella, and congenital rubella syndrome (CRS). Its purpose is to support countries in sustaining the elimination of these diseases.

Desired outcomes of the Regional Strategy for Measles and Rubella Elimination

To regain the elimination status of measles and rubella, the countries in the region of the Americas must urgently implement the three main components of the regional strategy for measles, rubella and CRS and elimination:

1. implement a rapid response to outbreaks;
2. achieve high and homogeneous population immunity levels;
3. and maintain a solid and sensitive surveillance systems. This includes the following:

• Achieve vaccination coverage of 95% or higher with two doses of the vaccine in at least 80% of municipalities.
• Identify and immediately report all suspected cases of measles, rubella, and CRS. Conduct field investigations of all suspected cases within 48 hours after the case has been reported.
• Strengthen surveillance in high-risk, border, and epidemiologically silent areas, complementing it with active case finding.
• Identify and immediately vaccinate all contacts of confirmed or suspected cases (according to each country's analysis of susceptible individuals), ideally within the first 72 hours after the first contact with the case, during the period of disease transmissibility (4 days before to 4 days after the date of onset of the rash).
• Implement rapid response plans, including the formation and training of rapid response teams, situation rooms, and adequate hospital infection prevention and control measures.
• Intensify vaccination activities, using outbreak response vaccination tactics (selective or mass vaccination) in areas with confirmed cases and strengthening routine vaccination in areas and populations at higher risk of spread.
• Ensure international travelers are vaccinated before visiting areas with active transmission, including infants aged 6 to 11 months as an exceptional measure, at least 15 days before visiting areas with active transmission.

The Comprehensive Immunization Program (CIM) of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is providing technical cooperation to the countries of the Region to face these challenges. Countries need to be prepared to detect, investigate and implement rapid and effective responses to measles and rubella outbreaks.

The selected consultants will support Ministries of Health (National Health Authorities) in the following activities:

1. Promote the organization of the Rapid Response Team (RaRT/ERRa – equipo de respuesta rápida) at the national and subnational levels and accompany and strengthen its actions.
2. Contribute to the situational analysis of measles or rubella outbreaks at least at the national level.
3. Support rapid response activities in areas with active outbreaks, with an emphasis on case investigation, identification and vaccination of susceptible contacts, active search of cases, and the implementation of selective or mass vaccination strategies, according to the epidemiologic scenario.
4. Support the implementation of microplanning activities for the implementation of mass vaccination strategies.
5. Support the implementation of Rapid Vaccination Monitoring (MRV) to identify pockets of unvaccinated or under-vaccinated individuals.
6. Strengthen epidemiological surveillance through monitoring of indicators and the implementation of community, institutional, and laboratory active searches, as part of outbreak control and outbreak closure actions.
7. Coordinate with different national actors, to triangulate information and strengthen outbreak control measures.
8. Support the National Sustainability Commission activities, including its participation in the ERRa at the national level.
9. Provide technical advice for the elaboration of the outbreak closing report, that should include the criteria to verify the outbreak interruption as described in the Regional Framework for the Monitoring and Re-verification of Measles, Rubella and Congenital Rubella Syndrome Elimination in the Americas.
10. Support the integration of the Red Cross/Red Crescent national society into the planning and coordination of vaccination activities to build capacity for future support. Specifically, facilitate Red Cross/Red Crescent participation in Ministry of Health social mobilization related committees to share Red Cross/Red Crescent knowledge of local community barriers, and if requested, support Red Cross/Red Crescent resource mobilization activities.
11. Hold weekly coordination meetings with relevant stakeholders, including the IFRC (including the M&R Country Platform Officer in Geneva), Red Cross/Red Crescent National Society and Pan American Health Organization country and regional office teams to track progress on rapid response implementation.
12. Prepare weekly written summary reports, including key action items from the coordination meetings, on the status of programmatic activities and share with the IFRC (including the M&R Country Platform Officer in Geneva), Red Cross/Red Crescent National Society, UNICEF, Pan American Health Organization country office team, and other relevant partners. Include photos of the actions supported in the field, as part of the reports.
13. Support the implementation of activities related to clinical management of measles complications, and infection prevention and control.
14. Other tasks that may arise in the assigned work.

Location

Deployment to country to provide direct support to the Ministry of Health and in-country partners.

Duty station: Any priority country in the Region of the Americas.

Support to be provided to the consultant

The consultant will be provided with support from the IFRC for travel, logistics, program management through the M&R Country Platform Office and Administrative Lead. Additional technical support will be provided by other key colleagues including at the Pan American Health Organization, and may be provided by colleagues at IFRC regional or country delegations.

Time allocation

40 hours per week over a 3 to 6-month period, depending on country needs.

Management of consultancy

The consultant will be directly managed by the IFRC M&R Country Platform Officer with overall coordination from the IFRC Immunization Senior Officer, both based in Geneva.

Required

• Medical doctor or related public health profession, with postgraduate training in epidemiology, public health or other related.
• No links to the pharmaceutical industry.

Preferred

• PhD or Doctoral studies.

Required

• At least 5 years of experience in vaccine preventable diseases epidemiological surveillance and/or immunization program, including experience in measles/rubella outbreak control at national level, e.g. Ministry of Health.
• Knowledge and experience with the use of digital tools for outbreak control in epidemiology and/or public health.

Preferred

• Experience in the implementation of measles/rubella outbreak control at international level.
• Scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals and other media.

Required

• Knowledge and experience in implementing a rapid response to measles or rubella outbreaks, including field outbreak investigation, planning and conducting outbreak response measures, analysis of surveillance, laboratory surveillance and vaccination data, and implementation of verification for outbreak interruption.
• Demonstrated ability to apply strong analytical skills, collaborate effectively within diverse teams, and leverage problem-solving experience to address complex challenges.

Preferred

• Knowledge in the design of digital tools for surveillance processes and skills to interact with government institutions for the promotion and implementation of public health projects.

LANGUAGES

Required

• Excellent level of Spanish proficiency in writing, reading and speaking.

• Excellent level of English proficiency in writing, reading and speaking required for international consultants, and preferred for national consultants

Application Instructions

• Please submit your application in English only.
• Please include the below in your application
• Curriculum Vitae
• A cover letter summarizing your experience and suggested approach to the consultancy

Notes

• The consultant will be contracted by the IFRC and the standard contractual terms will apply.
• Agreed travel expenses will be reimbursed at cost in accordance with the IFRC’s relevant regulations.

The closing date and time for this vacancy are based on Geneva time. Applications must be submitted by 23:59 (11:59 PM) Geneva time on the advertised closing date.