Consultant (Cluster Coordinator)

Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) is collaborating with UNICEF for the project “Boosting demand for routine immunization and reducing zero dose children in 7 districts of Uttar Pradesh”. The project will invest in enhancing capacity of Front Line Workers(FLWs) through contact sessions in sector meetings or at dedicated training sessions. The capacity building sessions will be capsule based and will be administered in small but regular doses. The contact training session will employ techniques like case based approach and simulations to improve interpersonal communication and counselling skills to address vaccine avoidance behaviour. To track capacity building processes and results, a district scorecard will be created to highlight capacity building intervention activities. Engagement with local influencers will be an important component of project strategy to reduce ZD children and make social norms favourable for RI. The local influencers (religious leaders, local doctors, service providers, teachers, social workers, NSS/NYK students etc.) will be identified and mapped in the social maps. Activities for their capacity building, and subsequent engagement will be designed and periodically conducted. PHFI will also feed the results of social networking exercise, to link the VAB families with local influencers to maximize their impact.

PHFI is looking for Cluster Coordinators to effectively implement the project on the reduction of zero-dose children and strengthening Routine Immunization in 07 high priority districts of Uttar Pradesh. Under Gavi HSS-3, the vaccine alliance, PHFI shall implement the UNICEF supported program ensuring alignment with the national health policies and GoUP. The Cluster Coordinators under the guidance of CSO Coordinators will be playing a crucial role in ensuring that all children within a specific geographical area receive the essential Zero Dose vaccinations. He/she shall coordinate, implement, and monitor vaccination program activities aimed at reducing the number of zero-dose children in his/her assigned clusters, ensuring every child receives the necessary immunizations.

The Cluster Coordinators will be under the guidance of CSO Coordinators in 7 districts. Their primary function/responsibilities will be to:

• Work with frontline workers, such as ASHAs and ANMs, to conduct and periodically update social mapping within ASHA areas, ensuring the identification and tracking of zero-dose children and reflecting progress on social maps regularly.
• Identify, map, and mobilize local and community influencers—including doctors, teachers, and community elders—to engage them in the vaccination efforts and encourage the immunization of zero-dose children.
• Conduct door-to-door visits alongside ASHAs to directly engage with families, especially in areas identified through social mapping as having a high number of zero-dose children.”
• Implement targeted social mobilization and behavior change activities in ASHA areas to boost RI coverage and reduce the incidence of zero-dose children.
• Actively participate in block and cluster-level meetings to present performance updates,