Health Officer

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children's lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

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For every child, CARE.

Established shortly after the war in Ukraine escalated in February 2022, the UNICEF Refugee Response Office (RRO) in Poland has been working with the Ministry of Health and other organizations at both local and central levels to support the health system in responding to the needs of refugee women and children hosted in Poland. There are currently approximately 950,000 Ukrainian refugees registered in Poland, the majority of whom are children and women.

UNICEF in partnership with the Ministry of Health Poland, municipalities, other partners and in coordination with UN Agencies, supported the health system to respond to the needs of refugee women and children that are hosted in Poland. A study conducted in 2022 indicates that 37% of interviewed Ukrainian mothers find it difficult to access vaccination services in Poland. 37% of mothers from Ukraine who took part in the survey do not know how to get their child vaccinated in Poland. (46% of mothers (participants of the research) from Ukraine in Poland emphasized the importance of information in their own language and almost one in five participants had issues with understanding or translating vaccine records.

Among other health-related priorities, UNICEF RRO in Poland is looking to improve access to and uptake of vaccination services among Ukrainian refugees. Various Social and Behaviour Change strategies and approaches are being rolled out in Poland to address the barriers to immunization as well as to effectively reach the most vulnerable groups.

How can you make a difference?

The Health Officer reports to the Social Behavior Change Specialist NO3 for close guidance and supervision and will be responsible for supporting the health section and contributing to delivering results for children in emergency contexts. This role is also crucial in supporting the programmatic aspects of partnerships, particularly as the Poland Office has defined programme priorities on vaccine-preventable diseases and Mental Health and Psychosocial Support. This post will be expected to provide programmatic and administrative support to the health programme and be part of the Social and Behavior Change team. Under the supervision and guidance of the supervisor, the Health Officer supports the respective section(s) by carrying out a range of programme support functions to help develop, implement, and monitor their country programme, ensuring effective and timely delivery that is consistent with UNICEF rules and regulations.

Summary Of Key Functions/accountabilities

• Support to programme development and planning
• Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results
• Technical and operational support to programme implementation
• Networking and partnership building
• Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum Requirements

• Education:
  • A university degree in one of the following fields is required: public health/nutrition, pediatric health, family health, health research, global/international health, health policy and/or management, environmental health sciences, biostatistics, socio-medical, health education, epidemiology, or another relevant technical field.
• Work Experience:
  • At least of one year of professional experience in one or more of the following areas is required: public health/nutrition planning and management, maternal and neonatal health care, or health emergency/humanitarian preparedness.
• Skills:
  • Experience supporting social and behaviour change projects is an asset.
  • Programme management and monitoring, development and planning are required.
• Language Requirements:
  • Fluency in English and Polish is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

Desirables

• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergency.
• Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.
• Networking and partnership building skills is highly desirable.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF Competencies Required For This Post Are…

• Builds and maintains partnerships
• Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
• Drive to achieve results for impact
• Innovates and embraces change
• Manages ambiguity and complexity
• Thinks and acts strategically
• Works collaboratively with others

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF is here to serve the world's most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of measures to include a more diverse workforce, such as paid parental leave, time off for breastfeeding purposes, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF's active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable male candidates are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants' bank account information.

UNICEF shall not facilitate the issuance of a visa and working authorization for candidates under consideration for positions at the national officer category.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.