Scope of Work (SoW)

Short Term Quality of Pharmacy Education Co-Assessor

The USAID-Global Health Supply Chain Program- Procurement Supply Managementproject Ethiopia (GHSC-PSM)

Background

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Global Health Supply Chain Program- Procurement and Supply Management project (GHSC-PSM)works to ensure an uninterrupted supply of health commodities in support of U.S. government-funded public health initiatives around the world including Ethiopia. The project provides direct procurement and supply chain management support to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), and USAID’s family planning and reproductive health programs. To support U.S. government-funded global health activities, Global Health Supply Chain Program - Procurement and Supply Management (GHSC-PSM) manages a wide array of health commodity procurement services and provides related systems-strengthening technical assistance encompassing all elements of a comprehensive supply chain.

The Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Association (EPA) was established in 1975 with the objective of enhancing the profession of pharmacy in Ethiopia and be able to contribute to the creation of health society. It also aimed at promoting ethical practice among members. Moreover, it develops and maintains services, programs, procedures and mechanisms which may better help the public to get quality pharmaceutical services in the country. The association has so far conducted various assessments in collaboration with different local and international organizations to so as to be able to provide credible information to serve as an input for policy makers/information for action.

Quality of education is the foundation for providing quality services to clients in any sphere of engagement including health and pharmaceutical services. Problems in the quality of graduates have a direct negative impact on the quality of services to be rendered and the competence and professional ethics of the practitioner. Currently, reports indicate that there are problems in the input, process and the output of health education/training in Ethiopia both in public and private medical colleges. Even though gaps are observed in the competence of graduates, there are no official studies specifically conducted on the quality of pharmacy education in Ethiopia. Hence, it is important to conduct a national quality of pharmacy education study/assessment so as to be able to produce an objective evidence to generate an evidence that shape and improve health service delivery.

As part of its support to EPA, GHSC-PSM will provide technical and financial support to conductthis national assessment onQuality of Pharmacy Education. Accordingly, GHSC-PSM plans to recruit a co-assessor who will be responsible to supportthe national assessment on quality of pharmacy educationin close collaboration with the lead- assessor, EPA, GHSC-PSM and technical committee.

  1. Goal of the assessment

The goal of this assessment is to generate a reliable and current evidence on the quality of pharmacy education and disseminate the result to inform policy makers and program implementers so as to improve health care service delivery of the country.

  1. Objective of the assessment

2.2 General objective

  • To assess the quality of pharmacy education in Ethiopia.

2.2 Specific objectives

  • To assess the level of compliance of the national standard by the Higher Education Institutions which are currently providing pharmacy education.
  • To assess pharmacy students’ perception and satisfaction with pharmacy education.
  • To assess pharmacy graduates’ perception and satisfaction with pharmacy education.
  • To assess the core competencies of pharmacy graduates against the objectives of curriculum.
  • To assess perception and level of satisfaction of employers towards pharmacy graduates.
  • To identify factors positively or negatively contributing to quality of pharmacy education in Ethiopia

3. Responsibilities of the co-assessor

  • Assist the lead assessor to prepare and submit the study protocol and tools for local ethical review after securing concurrence from the technical committee where all relevant stakeholders are represented
  • Assist the lead assessor to prepare both quantitative and qualitative data collection tools
  • Assist the lead assessor to pre-test the data collection tools and amend accordingly
  • Assist the lead assessor to prepare a sound and detailedlogistics proposal
  • Assist the lead assessor in delivering training to supervisors and data collectors.
  • Assist the lead assessor to conduct Focus group discussions (FGD) and high-level key informant interviews
  • Assist the lead assessor to oversee the execution of the research as per the design and guide the supervisors.
  • Assist the lead assessor to report the progress achieved in executing the planned research framework
  • Assist the lead assessor to prepare data entry templates and assist the data entry clerks
  • Assist the lead assessor to conduct data cleaning, analysis, interpretation and report writing
  • Assist the lead assessor to present the research findings in the pre-validation workshop and incorporate comments.
  • Assist the lead assessor to present the research findings in the validation workshop and incorporate comments.
  • Assist the lead assessor in developing the final report to the Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Association and GHSC-PSM.
  1. Qualification and experience
  • Degree in pharmacy and master’s degree preferably in pharmacy or other related specialties.
  • More than seven years practical experience in pharmacy education/research/consultancy preferably in pharmacy education or human resource for health or curriculum development.
  • Have at least one experience in designing different national and international studies/assessments.
  • Demonstrated experience in conducting quantitative and qualitative research, especially larger-scale research projects.
  • Have a strong professional conduct and commitment to his profession and recognized by different institutions.
  • Having additional academic background in pedagogy/curriculum development is preferable.
  • Having at least one published research output in the area of quality of education or related fields is preferable.
  • Have good knowledge and experience with statistical tools
  • Excellent interpersonal skills, sound judgment, and communication skills
  • Having strong passion and commitment in meeting the agreed deadlines
  • Having the ability to work in a team
  1. Administration
  • The co-assessor/consultant will directly report to designee of GHSC-PSM Program Ethiopia, Technical Committee, and Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Association.
  • The co- assessor will meet with the technical committee every two weeks. When the need arises, the chairperson of the Technical Committee can call a meeting.
  • All technical issues of the assessment will be led and monitored by the Technical Committee.
  • All research related costs will be covered by the GHSC-PSM Program.
  • The co- assessor shall treat any information obtained in the course of the agreement as confidential and is not entitled to make any report about the findings.
  • All deliverables shall be reported to EPA and GHSC-PSM.
  1. DELIVAREABLES

Together with the lead assessor, the co-assessor is responsible for the following deliverables

  • Study protocol/proposal
  • Data collection tool
  • Raw data in soft and hardy copies (both qualitative and quantitative)
  • Draft assessment report ready for validation workshop
  • Validation workshop proceeding
  • Final assessment report
  1. LEVEL OF EFFORT AND TIMELINE
  • The co- assessor/consultant will have around 50 days of LOE as per the following estimate within the timeline April – July 2018
  • Develop study protocol/proposal accepted by the technical committee: 8 days
  • Develop data collection tool and provide training to data collectors: 8 days
  • Pre-test methodology and amend accordingly: 2 days
  • Oversee data collection: 10 days
  • Data entry and development of the draft assessment report for technical committee review: 15 days
  • Validation workshop and proceeding writing: 3 days
  • Produce final assessment report incorporating the workshop feedback: 4 days