Background/Context:
The IRC has operated in Syria since 2012, providing protection, health, economic recovery, and early childhood development programs in Idleb, Aleppo, Ar-Raqqa, Hassakeh, and Deir ez-Zor, with new programs expanding into Hama, rural Damascus, and Homs. With a team of over 350 members, the IRC has established trust and strong community relationships, ensuring access and effective service delivery.
Our longstanding experience in the country to date provides a strong foundation for the IRC to further adapt and expand its programming across Syria, in order to respond to the new realities, with a greater focus on resilience and recovery initiatives. Alongside this, the IRC also It plays a significant role in Syria’s NGO, donor, and coordination forums, holding key positions and actively engaging in advocacy efforts.
Healthcare
Since 2012, the IRC has provided and supported the delivery of comprehensive primary and secondary healthcare through hospitals, primary healthcare clinics, mobile medical units (MMUs), and community health interventions. Ensuring access to vital services like sexual and reproductive health, clinical psychosocial support, and other specialized care. Working alongside our government and civil society partners, we have helped secure a steady supply of medicines and medical equipment into the country, trained healthcare providers, and deployed health personnel to maintain services in even the most challenging conditions.
Job overview:
The Health Coordinator is a highly experienced, dynamic individual with a strong technical background and team and program management experience. This role will manage continued growth, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of IRC Syria Health programs, including integrated MPHSS, Nutrition and SRH. The portfolio includes direct implementation and work in partnership with local NGOs and governmental bodies in accordance with the IRC Syria Health program priorities. The Health Coordinator will oversee the design, development, and management of a robust health program able to meet the health needs of vulnerable people, aiming to improve the quality and accessibility of health services throughout multiple locations in Syria.
The Health Coordinator will ensure continued relevance of services in an evolving context in Syria and lead on the required program adaptation and integration of complementary activities to ensure basic needs are met and clients are assisted in accessing quality health services, while working to support and strengthen the health system. Working closely with the Deputy Director for Programs and other Sector Leads, the Coordinator will oversee the implementation and growth of the health portfolio in line with the country's strategy and quality standards.
The Health Coordinator plays a critical role in building staff and partners’ technical and program management capacities, driving forward implementation and coordination with other actors, ensuring quality data is produced, analyzed, and used effectively, and participating in IRC and multi-agency advocacy efforts
Responsibilities:
Program Management, Technical Quality, and Strategy
•Provide strategic direction, leadership, and overall management to the health program within the Syria Country Program in line with the country strategy including functional primary healthcare systems and services that can include reproductive health, communicable and non-communicable diseases, health information, drug management, infection prevention and control, environmental health/WASH, and nutrition.
•Actively participate in defining the country's strategic action plan, particularly related to Health and the integration with other program’s sectors
•Supervise and provide technical support to the team to implement evidence-based IRC programs to a high-quality standard, including services provided by partner organizations.
•Research, identify, monitor, and report health needs and explore the potential of addressing unmet needs by guiding additional needs assessments as required.
•Coordinate with Grants Coordinator to ensure grant management and compliance to donor requirements, reporting, and donors’ SOPs.
•Ensure effective development and management of project work plans and budgets, spending plans, procurement plans, storage, recruitment, and accurate reporting in line with IRC and donor regulations.
•Ensure the implementation of M&E systems with specific attention to improving the effectiveness of systems; ensure output and impact data are collected and used to optimize program quality, and support the process of project evaluation, generate learnings & health research agenda, and support any emerged need assessments.
•Use and adapt IRC program quality tools, including gender equality, client responsiveness, quality of care, IPC, and other tools, to improve the impact and outcomes of Health programs.
•Develop and maintain IRC whole of Syria health strategy and ensure alignments with IRC global strategy and other updated health strategies including MOH and WHO.
•Work with other sectors: Economic Recovery and Development, Integrated Protection, and Early Childhood Development to improve integration and coordination within programs.
Program Development
•Inform design processes that ensure new or adapted programming for the health sector focusing on improving efficiencies, impact, and integrated and localized approaches.
•Develop proposal narratives and financial budgets, and participate in strategic planning, that align across multiple grants reflective of a cohesive, comprehensive health portfolio.
•Assist in log frames, work plans, and monitoring tools and support their implementation.
•Ensure that IRC Syria health activities demonstrate adherence to international, national standards, and best practices guidelines.
•In collaboration with the Grants & Partnerships, Finance, HR, and Supply Chain departments, ensure smooth and IRC- and donor-compliant management of project work plans, procurement plans, and budgets (i.e., actively and effectively engage in budget forecasting, spending planning, procurement plans, Item Forecasts, BVA reviews), promoting best use of resources across activities and delivering on time, to scope, and within budget.
Research, Learning, and Analysis
•Identify research and learning agendas aimed at improving evidence generation feeding into programming
•Lead Health assessments and context-appropriate research aimed at generating a strong evidence base for IRC Economic Wellbeing programming and informing IRC advocacy
•Support the greater sharing and use of research and learning within IRC’s program sectors, including by contributing to program development and design, to ensure interventions are responsive to needs and informed by a sound understanding of the environment(s) in Syria
•Identify, monitor, and report unmet needs. Explore the IRC's potential to address those needs within the parameters of the Strategic Action Plan and sector priorities.
Coordination & Representation
•Coordinate with other sector leads and country program management as needed, representing IRC in inter-agency forums and discussions.
•Coordinate regularly with internal program and operational stakeholders, the health and other IRC partners.
•Participate in relevant working groups both within and outside of the humanitarian coordination system, and development working groups including the MOH working groups such as HSS.
•Attend relevant donor meetings and presenting Health activities during the field visits, external advocacy meetings, and any other relevant avenues.
•Lead responsibility for strategically developing and maintaining partner relationships with local organizations as guided by the IRC PEERS system.
Partner Management
•Work closely with the IRC's Partnerships team to ensure the IRC's Partnership Strategic objectives are achieved
•Ensure regular performance monitoring of partners to achieve the project’s set objectives; provide technical support and guidance as needed.
•Work closely with the IRC's Partnerships team and the relevant Health Managers, drafts and/or reviews of the Partnerships priorities in Health and Stakeholders Analysis, identifying, when needed, strategic partners to jointly achieve Health outcomes for vulnerable populations
•Take part in periodic Partnerships meetings, such as the Partnerships Working Group and/or Partnerships Review meetings
Staff Performance Management, Learning & Development
·Hire, supervise, and build the capacity of team members in relevant technical and management competencies and as mentioned in the IRC health team structure.
·Develop and implement remote management capacity-building approaches to build the strengths of the teams in Syria.
·Coach, train, supervise, and mentor direct-report staff, including communicating clear expectations, setting annual performance objectives, providing regular and timely positive and constructive performance feedback, and providing documented semi-annual performance reviews.
·Maintain open and professional relations with team members, promoting a strong team spirit and providing oversight and guidance to enable staff to successfully perform in their positions.
·Approve and manage time, attendance and leave requests to ensure adequate departmental coverage; ensure monthly, accurate timesheet submission and carry out probationary reviews.
·Hold high-quality meetings with each direct report on a regular and predictable basis, minimally on a monthly basis.
·Provide a measurable development plan including on-the-job learning with the aim of strengthening technical capacity, exchanging knowledge within the team and providing guidance on career paths.
·As required, identify staff performance issues and work with Human Resources to document and address these in accordance with the National Staff Employment Policies.
·Maintain open and professional relations with team members, promoting a strong team spirit and providing oversight and guidance to enable staff to successfully perform in their positions.
·Promote and monitor staff care and well-being. Model healthy work-life balance practices. Support appropriate interventions in response to identified staff care needs of both national and international staff.
·Look for opportunities to support staff in their career growth, where appropriate.
·Adhere to and act in accordance with the IRC Global HR Policies and Procedures and communicate through word and example a high standard of compliance with all applicable policies and regulations.
·Conduct regular reflection or program review meetings with field-based staff to assess the level of achievement and draw on learning and data trends (including client feedback) to further inform program design and management decisions.
Job Requirements:
Education:
•Bachelor's degree in medical science or advanced degree in health science, e.g., pharmacist, nursing etc., an advanced MSC degree in Public Health, an advanced/postgraduate degree in a relevant field is preferred.
Work Experience:
•8 years of professional experience in humanitarian response, preferably with specific experience in market-based approaches, economic resilience programming, and economic recovery and development.
•At least 3 years in a managerial position, including staff management
•Demonstrated experience in managing large teams, preferably across multiple project sites
•Previous experience working on integrated and multi-sectoral programs is preferred
•Demonstrable experience working on funding proposals – program design, technical inputs, and cost applications (i.e., budgeting)
Demonstrated Skills and Competencies:
•Strong understanding of health policy, health systems, and public health principles.
•Strong skills in program and budget management, planning and reporting across multiple grants.
•Strong team and people management, organizational, and interpersonal skills.
•Ability to effectively prioritize tasks in a fluid environment.
•Excellent written and oral communication skills, effective in external representation and liaison
•Strong technical and budget management, planning, reporting, monitoring, and evaluation skills
•Demonstrated ability to collaborate and work together
•Comfortable in a multi-cultural environment
•Flexible and able to handle pressure well
•Languages: English, Arabic speaking and writing skills are desirable
Language/Travel:
Travels: minimum 30% percent travels
Language: Fluent English and Arabic are mandatory
Key Working Relationships:
Position Reports to: Deputy Director for Programs with close working relationships with Technical Advisors
Position directly supervises: Senior Managers and Program Managers
Internal contacts: Grants Department, MEAL, Health Cluster Co-Coordinator, Health Technical Unit, Supply Chain, Finance, HR, Research Evaluation and Learning Technical Unit, field management
External: Clusters and working groups
Standard of Professional Conduct:The IRC and the IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – our Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability, and Equality.