The International Rescue Committee (IRC) helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their future. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC works with people forced to flee from war, conflict and disaster and the host communities that support them, as well as with those who remain within their homes and communities. At-work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure. IRC leads the way from harm to home. Began work in Ethiopia, 1999 in response to severe drought that happened in Ethiopia’s Somali region. Currently, providing assistance in ten different regions implementing emergency and development programs in health, water and sanitation, economic recovery and development (ERD), women’s protection and empowerment, education, child protection, and multi-sectoral emergency response.
Job Overview:
The Nutrition Officer will assist medical staff in the care and treatment of patients in the IRC’s Mobile MHNT. The Nutrition Officer will be responsible for nutrition intervention of the clinic maintaining a high standard of care as they help treat patients. The workload is intensive and requires a team of dedicated health professionals to meet the ever-increasing demand for specialized medical care and at times the staff may be called upon to fulfill duties not directly involved with this job description.
Major Responsibilities:
Apply nutritional knowledge and skills to treat MAM and SAM. Oversee and lead clinical team in the management of malnutrition, prescribing necessary treatment respecting SP and government protocols.
Keep the patient and/or his/her family informed about their nutrition status and provide appropriate explanation/education about the treatment to follow, verifying that they have understood the treatment plan.
Work with staff to ensure care and communication is culturally sensitive.
Follow the evolution of patients during course of treatment, through consultations and examinations, prescribing the necessary treatment following SP protocols, deciding whether they can be treated or require further care at a different health facility - in collaboration with other SP clinical staff- and informing the patient and their family about the patient's condition.
Support clinical leadership to enforce compliance with standard infection prevention and control guidelines.
Participate in the accurate clinical documentation and collection of nutrition data, informing Nutrition Team Coordinator as appropriate, about any problem or complication of the patients’ illness or medical error (s).
Responsible for managing daily set up of MMNU; ensuring the appropriate amount of time is available to see patients.
Ensure patient confidentiality is always respected.
Support clinical leadership to provide training and mentoring to other clinical staff in dissemination of new knowledge or protocols.
Perform any other related duties as required.
Job Requirement
· Basic supervisory/managerial skills with strong inter-personal skills.
· Demonstrable experience in working with communities in participatory approaches and capacity building of health facilities.
· Ability to plan, organize, and supervise implementation of emergency health response projects.
· Good technical and report writing skills with computer skills and knowledge.
· Self-motivated, honest, highly responsible, punctual and ability to constructively address gaps and weaknesses.
· Ability to work under pressure in remote areas and understanding of the cultural context of the local area.
Educational Requirements:
· BSc, HO and MSc in nursing, MPH, master’s in nutrition with experience in Nutrition management.
