04.11.09 Call for Expressions of Interest
Background
Family Health International (FHI) Vietnam has been awarded a five-year cooperative agreement by the CDC-HHS/PEPFAR to build the palliative care clinical capacity of health care workers in Viet Nam.
In Vietnam, clinical palliative care training and capacity building has been underway at the national level since 2007 but is still relatively nascent. Training and mentoring thus far has focused primarily on physicians, although this work is relatively new. Very little training and capacity building has been provided in the area of pediatric palliative care. Training for other health professions including nurses and pharmacists is even less developed than for physicians.
FHI is partnering with the Ministry of Health (MoH) to develop clinical training and capacity building in the above areas. This includes a focus on in-service training for physicians, nurse and pharmacists in adults and pediatric palliative care.
FHI is seeking expressions of interest (EOI) from consultants and organizations highly experienced in clinical palliative care in developing country contexts. Expression of interests should be emailed to Dr Pham Le Huy in the format described below at huy@fhi.org.vn - no later than 5 pm, Vietnam time, on December 15, 2009. The expressions of interest will be reviewed by FHI who will then develop a detailed scope of work and contract with the successful consultants or organizations.
Scope of work
There are five primary areas of work described below. Applicants may choose to apply for one or more depending on their technical area of expertise. The overall focus of the work is leading training, developing new curricula where indicated (see below) and mentoring and building the confidence and capacity of local clinicians.
Successful applicants will provide technical support in the following areas:
1. Physician fellowship training: A two month advanced palliative care in-service training (divided into two one-month sessions separated by approximately two-three months). The training curricula and practicum sites have been developed but a trainer/clinical mentor is required to lead the fellowship training. Local senior palliative care trainers/mentors will co-lead the training with the palliative care clinical consultant. The clinical consultant will both lead the training and develop the training and mentoring skills of local senior palliative care physicians.
o Requirement: An experienced palliative care physician, ideally one who has worked in both HIV and cancer palliative care in developing country contexts. The physician needs to be able to travel to Vietnam for two non-contiguous months over 2010. Note: If a two month period in Vietnam is not feasible, the applicant may apply for one month. If two successful applicants are identified which apply for one-month only fellowship, the fellowship will be divided between then. However, the preference is for the same consultant to lead the entire fellowship.
o Deliverables:
- Revisions to the fellowship training curriculum as needed
- Trip report including key findings and recommendations related to clinical capacity of fellows and local co-trainers
2. Short-term physician clinical mentoring: Provide approximately two-weeks of clinical mentoring to senior local palliative care physician mentors/trainers one of more times during the year.
o Requirement: An experienced palliative care physician, ideally one who has worked in both HIV and cancer palliative care in developing country contexts.
o Deliverables:
- Presentations made during the consultancy
- Trip report including key findings and recommendations related to clinical capacity of local mentors/trainers
3. Nurse trainer/curriculum developer: Nurses palliative care training in Vietnam is highly limited. There is no in-service national level training curriculum for nurses. The MoH/FHI seek a consultant/organization who can develop and pre-test a 5-day basic nurse palliative care training curriculum on the palliative care role of nurses is req
o Requirement: The applicant needs to a highly experienced palliative care nurse, ideally one who has worked in both HIV and cancer palliative care in developing country contexts. They also need to be experienced in curriculum development and training.
o Deliverables:
- Final training curriculum
- Trip report including key findings and recommendations related to clinical capacity of fellows and local co-trainers
4. Pediatric palliative care trainer/curriculum development: Pediatric palliative care training in Vietnam is highly limited. The MoH/FHI seek a consultant/ organization who can develop and pre-test a 5-day basic pediatric palliative care training curriculum on the palliative care role of pediatric physicians is Vietnam.
o Requirement: The applicant needs to a highly experienced palliative care physician, ideally one who has worked in both HIV and cancer palliative care in developing country contexts. They also need to be experienced in curriculum development and training.
o Deliverables:
- Final training curriculum
- Trip report including key findings and recommendations related to clinical capacity of fellows and local co-trainers
5. Pharmacist training: Although pharmacists are critical for palliative care in Vietnam, there is no specific training for them in the use of opioids and other essential palliative care medicines. A 2-3 day training curriculum needs to be developed and pre-tested.
o Requirement: The applicant needs to an experienced pharmacist who is familiar with medicines used for palliative care. They are experienced in curriculum development and training.
o Deliverables:
- Final training curriculum
- Trip report including key findings and recommendations related to clinical capacity of fellows and local co-trainers
General applicant requirements:
Applicants need to demonstrate:
- Advanced level of experience in clinical palliative care service delivery
- Experience in and a strong commitment to local mentoring and capacity building
- Excellent training and communication skills
Preferred qualifications:
- Clinical experience in both HIV and cancer palliative care
- Experience working in developing country contexts, ideally in Asia
Expression of Interest Format:
The expression of interest should contain the following information:
1. Work plan with timeline (time in-country and ex-country)
2. Experience statement: Two-three paragraphs describing relevant experience and why the applicant is interested in the EOI. If the applicant is also an organization, this should include a statement of organizational capacity
3. Curriculum vitae of proposed consultants/contractors
4. Budget detailing amount of funds needed for travel, consultants, development of material (in-country and ex-country) and any other additional costs
5. Budget narrative
6. Availability and start date
7. Sample of work – applies to curriculum development only
Queries: Clarification questions may be sent to huy@fhi.org.vn until November 30, 2009.
