Consultant for Infection Prevention and Control Nurse

Consultant for Infection Prevention and Control Nurse – (2502292)

Contractual Arrangement: External consultant

Contract Duration (Years, Months, Days): 6 months

Job Posting

: Jun 12, 2025, 9:12:57 AM

Closing Date

: Jun 26, 2025, 9:59:00 PM

Primary Location

: Afghanistan-Kabul

Organization

: EM_AFG WHO Representative’s Office, Afghanistan

Schedule

: Full-time

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please note that the deadline for receipt of applications indicated above reflects your personal device’s system settings.

..

International Consultancy Contract for Infection Prevention and Control Nurse to Support the Implementation of the Infection Prevention and Control Component of the HER AF2 Project at the Health Facility level in Afghanistan

This consultancy is requested by:

Unit: WHO Health Emergency (WHE) Programme

Country Office Afghanistan

1. Purpose of consultancy

Support the implementation of the IPC component of the HER AF2 project at the health facility level through delivery of hands-on training, reinforce standard precautions, monitor compliance, and mentor hospital IPC staff. The consultant will be instrumental in operationalizing WHO guidance and building sustainable IPC capacity at the health facility level.

2. Background

Afghanistan continues to suffer the consequences of four decades of conflict, entrenched poverty, climate-induced crises, and barriers to women’s equality and participation in public life. This has negatively affected the lives of the Afghan people including growing unemployment, loss of livelihoods and assets, deteriorating health care systems, forced migrations, and other human rights violation.

The health system in Afghanistan continues to face enormous challenges due to conflict, under-resourcing, and weakened governance. Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) pose a significant threat to patient safety, especially in hospitals lacking adequate Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) infrastructure, trained personnel, and standardized practices.

Under the Health Emergency Response Project – Additional Financing 2 (HER AF2), funded by the World Bank, WHO is leading the support to the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) to strengthen infection prevention and control (IPC) in 11 strategically selected hospitals across multiple provinces. These hospitals were identified based on high or moderate surgical workloads and include regional, provincial, and district-level facilities where infection prevention and control are critical for patient safety and clinical outcomes.

The project focuses on two core domains: (1) foundational IPC infrastructure (policies, training, staffing, and equipment) and (2) implementation of targeted interventions to prevent surgical site infections (SSIs).

3. Planned timelines (subject to confirmation)

Start date July 01, 2025

End date: December 31, 2025

4. Work to be performed

Supervised by the WHE TL and under the overall guidance of the Head of the WHO Country Office, and working closely with counterparts at the Regional Office, the incumbent will act as an international IPC Nurse at the health facility level. S/he will manage the IPC component of the HER AF2 project, by supporting

Output 1: the implementation of IPC activities at hospital level in the selected 11 hospitals including hands-on training of frontline health workers,

Output 2: supporting routine IPC compliance monitoring, and mentoring nursing and IPC focal staff on best practices in line with WHO and national IPC guidelines.

Deliverables:

1. Support dissemination and application of updated IPC SOPs and job aids in priority hospitals.

2. Conduct on-the-job training and coaching for nurses and auxiliary staff on PPE use, hand hygiene, waste management, and decontamination.

3. Facilitate modular in-service refresher trainings and follow-up assessments.

4. Assist IPC focal points in monitoring daily IPC practices using WHO checklists and reporting tools.

5. Support the setup and functionality of IPC committees, through meeting with the hospital administration, identifying and training of the IPC focal points within the hospitals and ensure nursing leadership involvement within a maximum of 12 weeks.

6. Mentor facility staff on environmental cleaning protocols, sterilization processes, and SSI prevention.

7. Promote patient and caregiver education using IEC materials and multimedia content.

8. Prepare a comprehensive update on the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) component for inclusion in donor progress reports.

5. Technical Supervision

The selected Consultant will work on the supervision of:

Responsible Officer (1st supervisor):

Dr. Jamshed TANOLI

Email:

tanolij@who.int

Overall supervisor

Dr. Edwin Ceniza SALVADOR

Email:

salvadore@who.int

6. Specific requirements

Education:

• Essential: First level university degree in nursing. Certified training in the area of IPC from an accredited/recognized institute.
• Desirable: Advanced university degree in IPC, public health or other related field.

Experience

• Essential: from 5 to 10 years clinical nursing experience including at least 2 years working on IPC in health facilities and a minimum of 2 years of international experience. International experience is a requirement for an international consultancy.
• Previous work experience with WHO, other relevant UN Organizations or international NGOs

Skills/Knowledge

• Proven knowledge and skills in infection prevention and control, with experience performing IPC risk assessments and implementing IPC measures at facility level during acute and protracted emergencies, and outbreak investigations in health-care settings.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with colleagues at national and international levels.

Languages

• Excellent knowledge of English.
• Basic knowledge of Dari or Pashtu is desirable

7. Place of assignment (onsite)

The consultant will provide in-person consultancy in Afghanistan WHO CO in Kabul. Travels to other provinces may take place based on the target locations for the project.

8. Medical clearance

The consultant who will provide in-person consultancy for six months and will be expected to provide a medical certificate of fitness for work in Afghanistan.

9. Travel

It is expected that the consultant to be available to be present in Kabul and other provinces in Afghanistan to complete tasks under this consultancy

Travel dates

Location:

From:

July 01, 2025

To:

December 31, 2025

Kabul, Afghanistan

Purpose:

• To complete consultancy task

Additional Information

• This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar consultancies at the same level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• If your candidature is retained for interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
• For information on WHO’s operations please visit: http://www.who.int.
• The WHO is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The WHO recruits workforce regardless of disability status, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, race, marital status, religious, cultural, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, or any other personal characteristics.
• The WHO is committed to achieving gender parity and geographical diversity in its workforce. Women, persons with disabilities, and nationals of unrepresented and underrepresented Member States (https://www.who.int/careers/diversity-equity-and-inclusion) are strongly encouraged to apply for WHO jobs.
• Persons with disabilities can request reasonable accommodations to enable participation in the recruitment process. Requests for reasonable accommodation should be sent through an email to reasonableaccommodation@who.int
• An impeccable record for integrity and professional ethical standards is essential. WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter (https://www.who.int/about/who-we-are/our-values) into practice.
• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of short-listed candidates.
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• Consultants shall perform the work as independent contractors in a personal capacity, and not as a representative of any entity or authority.
• WHO shall have no responsibility for any taxes, duties, social security contributions or other contributions payable by the Consultant. The Consultant shall be solely responsible for withholding and paying any taxes, duties, social security contributions and any other contributions which are applicable to the Consultant in each location/jurisdiction in which the work hereunder is performed, and the Consultant shall not be entitled to any reimbursement thereof by WHO.
• Please note that WHO’s contracts are conditional on members of the workforce confirming that they are vaccinated as required by WHO before undertaking a WHO assignment, except where a medical condition does not allow such vaccination, as certified by the WHO Staff Health and Wellbeing Services (SHW). The successful candidate will be asked to provide relevant evidence related to this condition. A copy of the updated vaccination card must be shared with WHO medical service in the medical clearance process. Please note that certain countries require proof of specific vaccinations for entry or exit. For example, official proof /certification of yellow fever vaccination is required to enter many countries. Country-specific vaccine recommendations can be found on the WHO international travel and Staff Health and Wellbeing website. For vaccination-related queries please directly contact SHW directly at shws@who.int.
• In case the recruitment website does not display properly, please retry by: (i) checking that you have the latest version of the browser installed (Chrome, Edge or Firefox); (ii) clearing your browser history and opening the site in a new browser (not a new tab within the same browser); or (iii) retry accessing the website using Mozilla Firefox browser or using another device. Click the link for detailed guidance on completing job applications: Instructions for candidates .
• For Consultants hired for HQ, Switzerland vacancies
• Consultants working in Switzerland must register with the applicable Swiss cantonal tax authorities and social security authorities, within the prescribed timeframes (Guidelines issued by the Swiss Mission are available at: https://www.eda.admin.ch/missions/mission-onu-geneve/en/home/manual-regime-privileges-and-immunities/introduction/Manuel-personnes-sans-privileges-et-immunites-carte-H/Non fonctionnaires et stagiaires.html

Read Full Description