Geo Mapping & Geospatial Consultant

This role was posted on July 26, 2024. Please note that we will review applications on a rolling basis.

The Role

At Last Mile Health, we go as far as it takes for our patients. Are you an expert in geomapping Community Health Workers (CHW) and conducting geospatial data analysis? If so, you may be our next Geo Mapping & Geospatial Consultant. 
We are seeking a Consultant to join the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Last Mile Health (LMH) to provide geospatial data for ~8,154 CHWs across all 16 districts of Sierra Leone. This data will inform an updated CHW masterlist hosted in a registry. Information on the masterlist will aid policy review, resource allocation for community health systems strengthening, enhance CHW deployment, address service delivery challenges, and improve health service coverage and equity.The consultant will lead the process to develop a functional national georeferenced CHW masterlist hosted in a registry. This position will work directly with the BIRCH Technical Coordinator, under the supervision of Last Mile Health and the CHW National Coordinator over the consultancy period.

This position is open to candidates located in, and have authorization to work in Sierra Leone.

Project Description

Sierra Leone is implementing an integrated National CHW Program (NCHWP) with ~8,154 CHWs deployed across 16 districts to provide community-led health services. The Ministry of Health (MOH) and partners are investing resources and technical assistance to strengthen the health system, focusing on Integrated Community Case Management (iCCM), Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH), surveillance, and health promotion.
Project BIRCH (Building Integrated Readiness for Community Health), funded by Global Fund (GF), aims to build the foundational components for a mature national CHW program. Despite CHW deployment, data gaps exist in their service areas and catchment populations. This project will conduct national geomapping and geospatial data analysis to create a comprehensive, georeferenced CHW masterlist (CHWML) hosted in a registry. The consultant will lead tool development, recruitment, training, and deployment of enumerators, data collection, data analysis, and masterlist development. Following analysis, LMH and CHW Hub will engage MOH Directorates of Human Resources for Health (DHRH) and Policy Planning and Information (DPPI) to host the masterlist in the registry (iHRIS), enhancing MOH and partners’ decisions on CHW allocation.

Consultancy Details

• Project Duration: 2-3 months 
• Anticipated start: September 
• Location: The position is based in Freetown with significant district-level engagement during planning and data collection.

Scope of Work 

• CHW Master List Needs Assessment
• Review NCHWP micro planning data – secure any available data that could be relevant to the geomapping process
• Review existing CHWML – detailing data/information gaps related to the internationally accepted CHWML
• Determine key data elements on the CHWML – to ascertain availability, accessibility, and quality of the CHWML
• Determine stakeholders’ roles and governance structure to manage the CHWML

CHW Geomapping / Master List Tool Piloting

• Develop geomapping tools – preferably an android-based electronic tool
• Set up and lead tool pretesting and validation – review as appropriate in preparation for geo data collection. Closely monitor all pretesting, validation, and tools review processes
• Determine scope of pretesting – work closely with MOH and LMH
• Develop relevant training and field materials required for the entire geomapping process, including pretesting of tools, training of enumerators and supervision teams

Implementation of Geomapping Across All 16 Districts

• Lead the development of a protocol outlining the procedures for the conduct of the geomapping and geospatial analysis. This would include timelines, teams setting, training plan for recruitment and training of enumerators and field supervisors, field/data collection exercise, data retrieval, processing and management, and reporting
• Set up the geomapping team
• Lead and manage the recruitment and training of ~128 enumerators – develop workshop agenda, budget, tools, materials, and slides
• Manage geo data collection and data retrieval

Integration of Geo Data into CHW Master List + Quality Improvement (QI) of Other Data Fields

• Conduct regular and timely data quality assurance checks of field data uploaded by the enumerators during data collection across the country – ensure feedback to ascertain data quality
• Perform geospatial analyses to inform CHW masterlist and allocation of CHWs by MOH – work closely with LMH Global MERL
• Create county maps and spatial databases of CHWs in alignment with the updated CHW master list
• Conduct a stakeholder working session to reflect and discuss geo data collected and integration into the CHW Master List

Develop CHW Masterlist SOP

• Identify/create the right template – consider scope
• Determine stakeholders and assign responsibilities for the SOP development
• Develop and validate SOP – consider storage and management of the masterlist

Report and Disseminate CHW Geo Data and SOP

• Prepare a comprehensive report with a summary of key findings from the National CHW Program geo mapping and geospatial exercise
• Disseminate report and SOP to key stakeholders – preferably at national level and ensuring MOH district level staff participation – develop relevant slides summarizing the entire NCHWP geomapping and geospatial

Integrate CHW Master List into IHRIS (Registry)

• Convene meetings with HRH (discuss masterlist and deployment into registry) involve relevant stakeholders from DPHC/CHW Hub, DPPI ICT, LMH, and other partners
• Determine relevant IT solutions to store, manage, validate, update and use/share of the CHWML
• Facilitate setting up of the registry – CHW Hub, HRH, and MOH ICT to provide relevant guidance

Required Qualifications

• A Bachelor’s Degree in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) related fields, such as Geography and Environmental Science.
• Demonstrated experience in leading GIS field work
• Strong skills in programs that support efficient GIS data collection, analysis, and visualization (e.g. ODK, Kobo Collect, R, ArcGIS, QGIS).
• Experience with developing protocols / SOPs for GIS data collection, data quality assurance, and data use.
• Understanding the various MOH information systems and how they work at the different levels of the health system in Sierra Leone
• Demonstrated experience with stakeholder engagement and ability to collaborate with and provide technical support to government counterparts.
• Attention to detail and commitment to high-quality outputs.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s Degree in geospatial sciences, epidemiology, or related field is a plus.
• Formal training in GIS and a demonstration of expertise in the field is an added advantage
• Experience working in remote or hard-to-reach, resource-limited settings in Sierra Leone
• Mission-driven with a commitment to health, social justice, and gender equity.
• Experience in recruitment and training of field staff / enumerators
• Experience in the Sierra Leone National CHW Program
• Experience in conducting MOH Masterlist formation, geo-mapping, and geospatial analysis

About Last Mile Health

Last Mile Health (LMH) saves lives in the world’s most remote communities by partnering with governments to bring critical primary care services to the doorsteps of people living in the last mile. LMH is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization and currently works in Ethiopia, Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Sierra Leone with US offices in Boston. For more information, visitwww.lastmilehealth.org. We are an equal-opportunity employer and value diversity at LMH. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.