GSK Fellowship, Task Force for Global Health

Job Description

The Task Force for Global Health is offering a fellowship opportunity to a graduate student from June – August 2020.
Fellows will have an opportunity to:

• Work as part of an ongoing Task Force program/department
• Become exposed to a pressing global health issue
• Become familiar with working with coalitions and collaborative concepts
• Work with a supervisor who is interested in mentoring

Program Background

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV) virus cause 1.3 million deaths per year and over two million new infections occur annually. Because hepatitis B vaccination, curative therapy for hepatitis C and other interventions can effectively prevent viral hepatitis transmission and mortality, the 2016 World Health Assembly endorsed goals for hepatitis elimination and preventing 7 million deaths by 2030. However, to eliminate hepatitis, access to effective interventions must improve. In 2019, to help countries build effective programs and accelerate progress toward hepatitis elimination, The Task Force for Global Health launched the Coalition for Global Hepatitis Elimination (CGHE). CGHE, www.globalhep.org, builds capacity for hepatitis elimination globally through delivery of technical assistance, knowledge generation and dissemination, and advocacy among partners united in a community of practice.

Project

CGHE is looking for a Fellow to support data analysis, operational research and technical assistance activities of the Coalition. CGHE works closely with the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington to analyze and disseminate hepatitis burden of disease data. Coalition operational research projects look to answer gaps in the evidence about effective models for delivering hepatitis prevention, testing, and treatment interventions to affected populations. Currently, CGHE is conducting a review of national hepatitis action plans and coordinating an operational research study on retreatment options for persons living with HCV who fail first line treatment. CGHE is looking to launch additional operational research studies on simplified HBV treatment models of care in low-resource settings and HCV testing and treatment of people who inject drugs (PWID). Coalition technical assistance projects respond to the needs of national and sub-national hepatitis elimination programs in planning, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation. CGHE technical assistance priorities are currently in supporting national programs in developing improved testing algorithms and strategies and assessing laboratory capacity for testing scale-up to reach elimination goals.

Activities and Opportunities

Under the supervision of the Director of CGHE, Dr. John Ward, and the Assistant Director of CGHE Ms. Lindsey Hiebert, the Fellow will support the advancement of the initiatives described above. Specific activities and roles for the Fellow will include:

• Lead analyses of hepatitis burden of disease data from the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation
• Contribute to the design and implementation of systematic reviews on topics such as hepatitis C testing among PWID
• Develop evidence summaries and toolkits for elimination programs, i.e. national plan template
• Assist in implementation of technical assistance projects on hepatitis testing with Ministries of Health and community-based organizations
• Conduct data collection and analysis for operational research projects on hepatitis prevention, testing, and treatment
• Write blog posts, scientific manuscripts, or reports, as appropriate, to summarize outcomes and findings from activities
• Draft social media and news content on Coalition project outcomes and results

The fellowship will provide a stipend of up to $2,500 paid bi-weekly at $14.25 per hour. The total hours worked will not exceed 230.

Application Requirements

Fellowship applicants should meet the following qualifications:

• Currently enrolled as a graduate student in public health, international development, or health sciences
• Completion of first year of graduate studies in high academic standing
• Coursework in public health, global health, or health sciences
• Outstanding oral and written communication, excellent facilitation, and presentation skills
• Experience in data analysis (Excel, Stata, R, SPSS or SAS)
• Global health field experience

How to Apply

• A cover letter stating the applicant’s area of interest in public health that includes an overview or summary of related projects, experiences, or publications produced by the applicant (maximum one page)
• Resume
• Letter(s) of Recommendation from instructors or supervisors in related positions that details the performance of the individual
• Completed application packages should be emailed to Ms. Hiebert (lhiebert [at] taskforce [dot] org) or hand delivered to the Task Force for Global Health office, or received via mail by the deadline: May 8, 2020.

Refer to the posting on Handshake to see more details about the position. 

APE Opportunity, Task Force for Global Health

Study on the Coalition for Operational Research on Neglected Tropical Diseases:

The Neglected Tropical Diseases Support Center (NTD-SC) is seeking an MPH student to conduct a study on the impact of the Coalition for Operational Research on Neglected Tropical Diseases (COR-NTD), for which NTD-SC serves as Secretariat. The study would include an analysis of studies funded through and influenced by COR-NTD activities, as well as a series of interviews with key coalition stakeholders on the impact of COR-NTD on their research activities. Deliverables will include a data analysis and written report, which will be leveraged to promote COR-NTD to funders and prospective partners.

About NTD-SC:

The NTD-SC is a program of The Task Force for Global Health, which is an affiliate of Emory University based in Decatur, GA. We support the global effort to control and eliminate diseases which impact poor and neglected populations, by:

• Engaging partners – including ministries of health, researchers, NGOs, donors, and the World Health Organization – to identify knowledge gaps and other barriers to disease prevention
• Informing best practices through operational research studies and other innovations that improve and sustain essential health services
• Reaching those most affected so that they may benefit from our innovations and so that progress towards disease prevention is accelerated.

Applied Practicum Experience (APE) Competencies:

For the literature review portion of the APE, we are seeking a student with familiarity of Web of Science. In addition, the student should have an interest in qualitative methods to design, implement, and analyze a study of key informant interviews.

The APE will leverage the following RSPH competencies:

• Interpret results of data analysis for public health research, policy or practice
• Propose strategies to identify stakeholders and build coalitions and partnerships for influencing public health outcomes
• Communicate audience-appropriate public health content, both in writing and through oral presentation

Additional Information:

Per the policy of The Task Force for Global Health, this APE will be conducted on a volunteer basis. This APE will be based at The Task Force for Global Health in Decatur, GA, but remote work will also be considered (with regular check-ins via Skype).

To Apply:

Interested applicants may send a resume and cover letter to Chelsea Toledo, Associate Director of Communications & Development at ctoledo [at] taskforce [dot] org.