District Hospitals and Primary Care Clinics in Northern Cape Province

Transcription

1 VHC: Scope of Work Country: Placement site: Assignment Title: Assignment Code: Length of assignment: South Africa District Hospitals and Primary Care Clinics in Northern Cape Province Clinical Preceptor RSA months (full time) OVERVIEW OF VOLUNTEER ASSIGNMENT Right to Care is an NGO in South Africa receiving funding from PEPFAR to implement a five-year partnership program in the Northern Cape, Gauteng, and Mpumalanga provinces. The primary objective of this partnership is to support the Ministry of Health with the implementation of the National Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Care, Management, Treatment, and Support Plan. Based in Gauteng Province, the Clinical Mentorship Program is Right to Care s new initiative to recruit and train physicians without prior experience working in HIV/AIDS treatment and management. After receiving training, the physicians are placed in government sites through the program. Right to Care provides support, including staffing, clinical mentoring, data management, medical equipment, mobile ART clinics particularly in Northern Cape where the principal ART sites are kilometers from clinics, and strengthening the patient transport system. Volunteers with appropriate qualifications and experience are being sought to support the HIV Care and Treatment Centers. Volunteers will be deployed to provide onsite guidance for staff in the district hospitals and primary healthcare clinics in Northern Cape Province. Potential in-country placement sites: Northern Cape: Galashiwe Hospital Kuruman Hospital De Aar Community Health Center Springbok Hospital Gordonia Hospital

2 Length of the assignment: day, 5 days per week) 3-6 months, assuming a full-time work schedule (8 hours a Name and title of supervisor: Head of clinic/facility and Right to Care Government Partnership Team Volunteer Qualifications: Required: Licensed medical practitioner Minimum of three years work experience in providing HIV care and treatment Experience in providing training and hands-on support in HIV/AIDS care and treatment Knowledge of and familiarity with opportunistic infections and treatment (TB in particular) Knowledge of STD diagnosis and treatment Preferred: Can work independently with strong leadership skills Strong written and oral communication skills in fluent English Familiarity with Afrikaans, SeTswana languages Previous experience working in a low-resource setting with a large case-load Previous experience in working with diverse professionals or working in a developing country Excellent interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to develop cooperative working relationships OBJECTIVE OF THE VOLUNTEER ASSIGNMENT The objective of the Clinical Preceptor is to provide training and onsite mentoring for clinic staff and impart skills to clinicians working in HIV treatment sites in the Northern Cape Province. This includes supportive supervision, mentoring, and specific technical assistance ACTIVITIES OF THE VOLUNTEER ASSIGNMENT Clinical mentors will be appointed to a specific district(s) in the Northern Cape Province to provide capacity-building support for different facilities within the district(s) for the management of HIV/AIDS patients. Specific activities: 1. Provide advice and assistance in establishing and improving clinical care for patients with HIV/AIDS or related conditions, including the following: Treatment with Antiretroviral therapy Tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment

3 Treatment and prophylaxis of opportunistic infections Down referral of patients from primary treatment initiation sites to satellite sites in the district Palliative care, including care for the terminally ill 2. Assist in the integration of support functions, disease management, and referrals in a comprehensive HIV/AIDS care program, resulting in creating and/or improving guidelines and systems. 3. Assist chief medical officers from the hospital and district clinics in coordinating training efforts across the district; facilitate a district-level coordinated training plan to ensure that all relevant staff receives necessary training. 4. Assist the local administrators in targeting all relevant staff in three training categories: Prescribers: Treatment experts (i.e. physicians and pharmacists) should receive an advanced level of theoretical and clinical training in HIV/AIDS management following the South African national guidelines on ARV treatment. Support Team: ARV clinic nurses, social workers, counselors, dieticians, pharmacists and pharmacy assistants should receive an intermediate level of theoretical and clinical training in the management of HIV/AIDS. National guidelines should be followed, with an emphasis on adherence, patient education on safer sex and healthy living, follow up of routine patients, and recognition of toxicities and side effects. General healthcare workers across the site (nurses, home based care nurses, lab technicians, drivers, receptionist) should receive theoretical training based on the national guidelines, with an emphasis on HIV testing, adherence and patient education on safer sex and healthy living, sample handling, etc. as appropriate to their cadres. 5. Liaise with local administrators to assist in site-mapping to define referrals between feeder clinics, screening clinics and the treatment centers; ensure that after the initiation of therapy, stable patients are referred back to the clinics for follow up; ensure that complicated patients are referred back to the treatment center in a timely manner. 6. Ensure that treatment of HIV and HIV-related opportunistic infections is in accordance with nationally approved guidelines for South Africa. 7. Train and supervise local multi-disciplinary teams responsible for the management of patients with HIV/AIDS. 8. Assist in initial and subsequent ongoing teaching and training of physicians, nurses, and other relevant groups in HIV/AIDS, as well as related diseases. Such assistance should include the following: Participation in formal training sessions on HIV/AIDS Participation in daily report and intake conferences

4 Assistance with ward rounds based on weekly schedule Establishing Continuing Medical Education in HIV/AIDS: periodic lectures and clinical demonstrations to the treatment teams Development and participation in conferences and workshops on the management of HIV/AIDS, to teach all levels of health care workers. Training of specific skills in diagnostic procedures Training in interpreting laboratory results and /or other diagnostic procedures Conducting clinical case reviews Conducting telephone consultations with remote sites within the district 9. Serve as a referral/consultative resource for complicated HIV/AIDS cases within the district. 10. Work alongside local physicians and supervise local treatment teams, in order to teach and share best practices in HIV/AIDS care and treatment. 11. Support and train staff at the local assessment clinics (PHC clinics), with the goal of equipping them for clinical management of patients for down referral. 14. Collaborate with site/clinical management to assist in the optimization of patient flow/triage and general clinic organization. 15. Develop and deliver an orientation to staff on new policies and procedures for referrals; map referral sites; develop patient flow/triage charts. EXPECTED OUTCOMES OF THE VOLUNTEER ASSIGNMENT Deliverables Organizational assessment of the placement hospital/center Needs assessment including an analysis of staff education and training needs Monthly reports (to the Clinical Mentorship Program Coordinator and AIHA Twinning Center) tracking experiences successes and challenges. Regular reports documenting training (including weekly training schedules), consultation (including number of clinical case reviews), and mentorship provided Plan for follow-up with clinic patients Final report RESPONSIBILITIES OF PARTICIPATING STAKEHOLDERS Volunteer: Complete the scope of work in the timeframe outlined Complete Twinning Center and Right to Care assessment and monthly monitoring and evaluation reports Submit a post-assignment final report and participate in an exit interview

5 Interact with patients and local staff in a manner this is consistent with social, cultural, and traditional norms Adhere to the AIHA Volunteer Standards of Conduct Placement organization/institution Provide resources necessary for the volunteer to carry out assignment successfully Identify a placement site for the volunteer to ensure sustainability of volunteer activities and provide technical orientation Submit performance assessment reports on the volunteer to the Twinning Center AIHA Twinning Center: Conduct pre-assignment orientation and training for volunteer and placement site staff Provide volunteer with safe housing, monthly living allowance, medical evacuation coverage, and travel-related costs to and from placement site Provide ongoing support of volunteer as needed