Primary Health Care Consultant, Papua New Guinea

About the role

WHO Papua New Guinea is seeking an external consultant to strengthen primary health care (PHC) in an assigned province or provinces. The consultant translates the WHO PNG ACE approach (advocate, convene and enable) into practical, time-bound improvements in maternal, newborn and child health, immunization, communicable and noncommunicable diseases, working through the Provincial Health Authority (PHA). The contract is full-time for 11 months, with the duty station and province to be assigned.

Key responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate multisectoral efforts with the PHA, mapping contributions of districts, programmes, churches, local governments, education, agriculture, water and sanitation, transport, security services and the private sector.
• Analyse routine data on maternal and child care, immunization and vaccine-preventable diseases, verify event-based surveillance signals and map zero-dose children and underserved catchments.
• Coach PHA and district teams through an integrated supervision approach covering maternal and child care, vaccination, microplanning, cold chain, AEFI and VPD reporting, and screening, diagnosis, treatment and referral.
• Investigate barriers to care, including financing, medicines, last-mile delivery, workforce and transport, and propose feasible options.
• Adapt and operationalize integrated PHC interventions, including outreach to zero-dose and missed children, defaulter follow-up, integrated supervision checklists and referral and medicine-stock tracking.
• Facilitate community planning with Ward Development Committees, village health assistants and the triad of trust, and document lessons for national review and scale-up.
• Assess performance indicators, support learning between districts, and produce stories and briefings for the PHA, NDoH, WHO and partners.
• Prepare materials for outbreak detection, community alerts and continuity of PHC services during emergencies, when requested.

Required profile

• Advanced university degree (master's level or above) in public health, medicine, nursing, midwifery, epidemiology, health systems, health policy, health services management or a related field.
• At least seven years of relevant experience in primary health care, public health or health-system improvement, including subnational work and practical work in maternal, newborn and child health, immunization or other priority PHC programmes.
• Expert knowledge of English.
• Desirable: postgraduate training in PHC, immunization, MCH, quality improvement, health financing, supply chain, community engagement or M&E; experience with immunization microplanning, zero-dose approaches, community engagement or multisectoral coordination; experience with Provincial Health Authorities or comparable decentralized health structures in PNG or another Pacific country; experience with WHO, a UN entity or a development partner.

Required skills

• Strong knowledge of the WHO-UNICEF PHC framework, national and WHO guidance on immunization and maternal and child health, decentralized health systems, quality improvement, routine health information and subnational health financing.
• Strong analytical, facilitation, coaching, stakeholder-engagement and technical-writing skills.
• Ability to turn policy, standards and data into practical implementation tools and time-bound management actions.

What we offer

• Remuneration of Band B at USD 7,000 per month.
• Accommodation allowance based on the accommodation component of the applicable UN DSA rate at the assigned duty station.
• Travel within the assigned province to districts, facilities and communities, and, when approved, to Port Moresby and other provinces, subject to WHO authorization and security clearance.