Surveillance Officers (4 Positions)

TOR For Surveillance Officers

ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW

The Organization for Social Services, Health and Development (OSSHD), previously known as the Organization for Social Services for AIDS (OSSA), was established in 1990 to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS. The organization was established by various organizations, including the Ministry of Health, well-known religious organizations, and some humanitarian organizations operating in Ethiopia at that time.

Since 2016, the organization changed its name and expanded its scope of work to cover a broader range of social, health, humanitarian, emergency and development programs. OSSHD began to focus on diverse programmatic areas such as SRH, Gender, WaSH, Harm reduction, TB, Malaria, MNCH, Immunization, treatment of NTDs, social services for vulnerable groups, emergency and humanitarian programs.

POSITION: Surveillance Officer

REPORTS TO: Regional Surveillance Officer, Health Security Activity

MINIMUM HOURS OF WORK: 40 hours per week

Number of positions: One (4)

Reports to: Dessie & Gonder Branch Office Manager/ Regional Surveillance Coordinator

Salary: As per the organizational scale

Contract Period: One year and possibility of extension

INTRODUCTION

The Health Security Activity (HSA) is a five-year USAID-funded initiative implemented by Project HOPE Ethiopia and consortium members. Covering the Amhara, Afar, and Tigray Regional States, HSA aims to reduce the impact of infectious disease outbreaks by building resilient One Health surveillance, diagnostics, and workforce development capacities. The Regional Surveillance Coordinator plays a crucial role in supporting the implementation of IR1 (Improve Early Disease Detection Capacity) within their designated region, ensuring effective surveillance activities, and strengthening collaboration with regional public and animal health bureaus and other stakeholders.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

JOB SUMMARY

The woreda Surveillance officer is responsible for the implementation and strengthening of public health and animal health surveillance activities at the woreda level, working closely with local government, health facilities, and community actors. The officer ensures timely disease detection, data reporting, and response in line with national surveillance strategies and the goals of the HSA project and IR1 objectives. This role requires strong technical expertise in disease surveillance, strategic planning, and effective communication to enhance early disease detection capacities in the woreda context.

The specific duties to be carried out by the Woreda Surveillance Officer are:

• Facilitate the implementation of surveillance activities in line with project objectives and national guidelines at the woreda level.
• Provide day-to-day technical support and supervision to surveillance focal persons at health facilities and community-based surveillance (CBS) actors/community.
• Coordinate with woreda-level public health and animal health offices to integrate human-animal surveillance efforts and response plans.
• Ensure functional multi-sectoral CBS systems are established and maintained in project-supported kebeles.
• Establish and ensure proper functionality of woreda level One Health coordination and collaboration platforms to ensure successful surveillance, detection and timely response to outbreak prone diseases.
• Organize and conduct training for health workers, animal health workers, and community volunteers on surveillance protocols and digital tool usage.
• Participate in regular coordination meetings with stakeholders and represent the project in woreda level platforms
• Ensure utilization of digital surveillance tools to facilitate near real-time data collection, sharing, and reporting.
• Regularly collect, compile, and submit accurate and timely surveillance data and reports to the head office.
• Monitor cross-border surveillance efforts in collaboration with neighboring districts, when applicable.
• Support the early detection and management of malaria among populations in project areas.
• Analyze surveillance data to identify trends, outbreaks, and areas requiring intervention.
• Provide technical support on the development and implementation of surveillance protocols and tools.
• Perform other related duties as assigned by the Regional Surveillance Officer to ensure successful implementation of the project.
• Bachelor’s degree in Public Health, Veterinary Science, Epidemiology, Nursing, or any health-related field (Master’s degree is an asset).

Duty station: Dessie Town, but manage Dessie town, Tehuledere and kalu woreda

Woldya Town, but manage Habru, Raya Kobo, Gidan

Sekota Town, but mange Gazgibla, Tsagbji and Sekota Zuria

Debark, but manage Debark, Adirkay and Telemit

BASIC REQUIREMENTS

• At least 5 years of progressive experience in disease surveillance, public health response at woreda level. (NGO experience is advantageous.)
• Demonstrated experience working with government health systems and community health structures.
• Familiarity with digital data collection tools and surveillance platforms (DHIS2, ODK, Kobo, etc.).
• Ability to work collaboratively with diverse stakeholders, including government officials, community members, and development partners.
• Familiarity with One Health approaches and integration across human, animal, and environmental health sectors.
• Expertise in community-based surveillance systems and digital health tools.
• Excellent leadership and strategic planning abilities.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Proficiency in English language (written and spoken); fluency in local language.