Purpose of consultancy:

The purpose of this consultancy is to support Ukraine in strengthening preparedness for and response to measles outbreaks, while advancing priority activities related to infection prevention and control (IPC) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The consultant will provide technical expertise to update outbreak preparedness approaches, support implementation of IPC/AMR interventions, and contribute to improved surveillance, prevention, and response capacities within the healthcare system.

Background:

Despite recent improvements, suboptimal immunization coverage levels continue to contribute to persistent immunity gaps in Ukraine and ongoing transmission of vaccine-preventable diseases, including measles outbreaks, with some outbreaks occurring in healthcare settings. The existing measles outbreak preparedness and response plan developed in 2023 with WHO support requires updating based on recent outbreak experience, operational lessons learned, and identified gaps in preparedness and response capacities.

At the same time, WHO continues to support Ukraine in strengthening antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and infection prevention and control (IPC) practices, including implementation of relevant national strategies, establishment of IPC monitoring mechanisms within healthcare service delivery processes, and strengthening of healthcare-associated infection prevention and surveillance capacities.

Deliverables:

Deliverable 1. Updated technical recommendations for measles outbreak preparedness and response, including clarification of approaches for prevention and management of intra-hospital measles transmission, informed by recent outbreak experience, WHO guidance, and findings from assessments of selected healthcare facilities in high-burden oblasts (Expected by: October 2026)
Deliverable 2. Technical contributions to strengthening the national AMR and IPC agenda, including development of proposed activities for the National Action Plan on AMR prevention for 2027–2028, based on previous assessments, consultations, and alignment with national and WHO priorities (Expected by: December 2026).
Deliverable 3. Documenting best practices on priority IPC, AMR, and healthcare quality topics, including intra-hospital measles transmission, IPC practices in inpatient rehabilitation settings, hand hygiene and glove use, and healthcare waste management (Expected by: mid November 2026).
Deliverable 4. Stakeholder engagement and coordination support for AMR/IPC implementation, including organization and facilitation of consultations with key stakeholders to inform the development and refinement of the National Action Plan on AMR prevention (Expected by: December 2026).

Qualifications, experience, skills and languages:

Educational Qualifications:

Essential: First university degree in Medicine/Public Health. Specialized or postgraduate training in epidemiology or a related field
Desirable: Postgraduate qualification in IPC. PhD degree in epidemiology

Experience:

Essential: Five years’ experience working in hospital epidemiology and IPC. Relevant experience in Ukraine
Desirable: Proven experience of working with international and national technical partner agencies (e.g. Ukrainian Ministry of Health)

Skills/Knowledge:

Essential: Knowledge of national and international best practice in area of infection prevention and control, Strong communication skills and ability work in team, proficiency in standard computer applications
Desirable: advanced skills in epidemiological tools.

Languages:

Essential: excellent knowledge of Ukrainian, knowledge of English is an asset.

Location

Off-site: Home-based

Travel:

The consultant is not expected to travel

Remuneration:

Contract total value: 18.000 USD.
Monthly rate, daily rate and numbers of the days: US 180 per day.
Consultant pay band range: SB-4 level, but not greater than NO-B equivalent). experience to perform the work.
Terms of payment: the payment will be on a monthly basis after provision of Technical Report and approval from Responsible Officer.

Expected duration of contract:

Target Start Date: 5 August, 2026
Target end date: 30 December 2026.
Contract Duration: 100 working days.

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.

National consultant to support measles control in hospital settings, improvement of IPC practices and AMR action plan drafting