Technical Officer, Regulatory Affairs, Medicines & Health Technologie

This requisition is for employment at the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)/Regional Office of the World Health Organization (WHO)

The primary objective of the Department of Health Systems and Services (HSS) is to strengthen health systems based on Primary Health Care, supporting universal health coverage. Its work encompasses the following areas\: strengthening of health systems governance for social protection in health; strengthening of regulatory frameworks and financial protection for progressive realization of the right to health; organizing people-centered, integrated health service delivery; promoting access to and rational use of quality, safe, and effective health technologies; strengthening national health research systems, and promoting the integration of scientific knowledge into health care, health policies, and technical cooperation; and developing human resources for health.

Under the general supervision of the Director, Health Systems and Services (HSS), and the direct supervision of the Unit Chief, Medicines and Health Technologies (HSS/MT), the incumbent is responsible for, but not necessarily limited to, the following assigned duties\:

1. Provide technical support for the implementation of Regulatory Exchange Platform Secure (REPs) and other regulatory initiatives;
2. Maintain effective communication with REPs stakeholders to exchange critical and technical information and resolve program/project implementation issues to ensure results are achieved as planned;
3. Support the Regulatory Exchange Platform, Member States and the governance structure of other regulatory initiatives; prepare related documents and facilitate the development and implementation of policies and procedures;
4. Develop and revise data collection tools to evaluate regulatory structures, processes and outcomes;
5. Support the collection of information on regulatory processes and systems within the Member States;
6. Revise data collected for completeness and accuracy to ensure quality; coordinate with national regulatory authorities and Country Offices on issues relating to the quality of data being provided;
7. Provide technical support to other professionals in the quality and regulation of medicines and health technologies, and specifically in the development of a regional virtual platform on regulatory processes and systems;
8. Develop and support the implementation of communication mechanisms with national regulatory authorities including list serves, communities of practice and other virtual forums to strengthen exchange of information and knowledge transfer between national regulatory authorities;
9. Support the preparation of proposals and reports relating to strengthening national regulatory capacity;
10. Provide technical support to working groups of the Pan American Network for Drug Regulatory Harmonization, as required;
11. Contribute and collaborate in the preparation and revision to ensure compliance with the Entity’s expected results; collaborate in the preparation of the Biennial Work Plan (BWP), semiannual work plans and periodic evaluations for assigned projects; participate in the annual evaluation of the Unit;
12. Develop technical content for resource mobilization for the implementation of BWPs;
13. Perform other related duties, as assigned.

Essential\: A university degree in pharmaceutical science or related field from an accredited university.

Desirable\: A master’s degree in health care administration, regulatory affairs or related fields would be an asset.

In the event that your candidature is retained for an 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/. PAHO will also use the databases of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation http\://www.chea.org and College Navigator, found on the website of the National Centre for Educational Statistics, https\://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator to support the validation process.

Essential\: Seven years of combined national and international experience in programs or activities related to regulatory systems, health planning, project management, monitoring and evaluation, including experience in strategy formulation and strategic resource allocation.

Desirable\: Experience in international technical cooperation in programs that support regulatory system strengthening, harmonization and convergence and/or experience in health systems projects related to regulation would be an asset.

• Overall attitude at work - Maintains integrity and takes a clear ethical approach and stance; demonstrates commitment to the Organization’s mandate and promotes the values of the Organization in daily work and behavior; is accountable for work carried out in line with own role and responsibilities; is respectful towards, and trusted by, colleagues and counterparts.
• Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences - Treats all people with dignity and respect. Relates well to people with different cultures, gender, orientations, backgrounds and/or positions; examines own behavior to avoid stereotypical responses; considers issues from the perspective of others and values their diversity.
• Teamwork - Creates team spirit; promotes collaboration and open communication in the team; proactively supports others; welcomes team responsibilities and drives team results; promotes knowledge sharing in the team. Proactively identifies conflicts and facilitates their resolution in a respectful manner; tactfully resolves conflicts between or with others and takes action to reduce any possible tension; effectively builds a rapport with individuals and teams, establishing good personal and professional relationships, as well as minimizing risk of potential conflict.
• Communication - Foresees communication needs of audience and targets message accordingly. Facilitates open communication; encourages others to share their views openly and takes time to understand and consider their views. Writes down ideas in a clear, structured, logical and credible way; drafts and supports the development of guidelines, policies and procedures. Shares relevant information openly and ensures that the shared information is understood; considers knowledge sharing as a constructive working method and demonstrates awareness of the Organization.
• Knowing and Managing Yourself - Remains objective and focused even in a “changing and moving” environment; continues to display positive behavior when facing some constraints; keeps challenges in perspective. Effectively controls own emotions, avoiding displaying them inappropriately; continues to show positive attitude when producing individual results, as well as supporting team’s work; continues to be collaborative with others, even in stressful and challenging circumstances. Sees feedback as a key element in personal and professional development; displays a high level of self-awareness in response to positive and negative feedback, accepts negative feedback positively, moving forward quickly and constructively. Seeks all relevant information for decision making from a wide range of sources; quickly learns new competencies and skills that expand role capability; shows rapid understanding of new and/or complex information relevant to job.
• Producing Results - Monitors own and others’ work in a systematic and effective way, ensuring required resources and outputs. Aligns projects with Organization’s mission and objectives. Consistently solves own and team’s problems effectively as needed. Challenges self and team to deliver high quality results, in line with Organizational goals. Welcomes challenges to produce new results. Shows awareness of own role and clarifies roles of team members in relation to project’s expected results. Shows awareness of own role and clarifies roles of team members in relation to project’s expected results. Consults counterparts as required and takes responsibility for work of own team. Demonstrates a good understanding of the impact of team’s and own work on external and internal counterparts. Proactively engages in projects and initiatives, accepting demanding goals, in line with Organizational Strategies and Program of Work. Demonstrates accountability for work of team and sets an example, while explicitly articulating lessons learnt for own and team’s benefit.

• Strong technical, analytical and conceptual skills on medicines and health technologies to assess, analyze, synthesize and provide recommendation on key technical issues.
• Ability to work collaboratively with multi-national cross functional groups and functional users, SMEs, developers, quality assurance testers, and users, with good communicational skills
• Knowledge of regulatory structures processes and core functions.
• Ability to manage, assess and review large volumes of data; management of information technologies to facilitate the presentation and analysis of data to guide the technical cooperation programs.
• Strong professional oral and writing skills, including the development of reports, oral presentations, and technical/persuasive documents for consideration at the highest levels of the Organization.

Very good knowledge of English or Spanish with a working knowledge of the other language. Knowledge of French and/or Portuguese would be an asset.

Demonstrated ability to effectively use a computer and utilize software programs such as Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. Other IT skills and knowledge of logistics management information systems and other software programs such as Visio, Microsoft SharePoint and Project would be an asset.

Post Adjustment\: 47.6% of the above figure(s). This percentage is to be considered as indicative since variations may occur each month either upwards or downwards due to currency exchange rate fluctuations or inflation.

This vacancy notice may be used to fill other similar positions at the same grade level.

Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.

Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to PAHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and e-Manual.

PAHO/WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.

PAHO/WHO offers an attractive compensation package including an annual net salary and post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station and exchange rates (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance). Other benefits include\: 30 days annual leave, dependency benefits, pension plan and health insurance scheme. Benefits for internationally recruited staff may include home leave, travel and removal expenses on appointment and separation, education grant for dependent children, assignment grant and rental subsidy.

Candidates appointed to an international post with PAHO are subject to mobility and may be assigned to any activity or duty station of the Organization throughout the world.

All applicants are required to complete an on-line profile to be considered for this post.

Candidates will be contacted only if they are under serious consideration. A written test and/or interview will be held for this post. The post description is the official documentation for organization purposes.