Research Specialist - Department of Community Health Sciences

The Department of Community Health Sciences (CHS) is the leading unit of its type in Pakistan, recognized regionally and internationally for the relevance, quality and extent of its work in support of public health and the development of primary health care systems. It comprises of five major operational units: Epidemiology & biostatistics, Health policy & management, Population & reproductive health, Environmental health, and Non-communicable diseases & mental health.

PURPOSe (Project to understand and research preterm pregnancy outcome & stillbirth: South Asia) is a prospective, observational study aimed to better understand causes of stillbirths and neonatal deaths among preterm live births in Pakistan & India. This is a study of pregnant women to evaluate the causes of stillbirth and neonatal death (
This is a grant-funded, short-term contractual position.

Responsibilities

You will be responsible for:

• corresponding and communicating with study partners within and outside AKU
• building rapport with co-investigators of JPMC and NICH for smooth implementation of the study
• implementing the study and directly contributing in development and conduction of training sessions/material for the study
• liaising with local partners in consultation with the study PI/study director
• keeping records of study documents & reports
• maintaining relevant paper work for the study
• training and supervising the field staff and addressing day to day issues
• managing data for the study
• maintaining inventory and regular maintenance/calibration of equipment.

Requirements

You should have:

• MSc in Public Health or Epidemiology & Biostatistics along with background of MBBS or BDS
• two to three years' of experience of public health related research work; experience of public health trials or occupational health interventions will be an added advantage
• excellent interpersonal and communication skills in verbal and written English and Urdu, however, command over any local language will be an added advantage
• good analytical skills, critical thinking & reasoning and scientific writing skills
• strategic planning, efficient work planning with timeliness, quality assurance, audit & monitoring skills
• ability to train study staff, provide effective and timely feedback, and handle challenging situations
• good management and organizational skills
• proficiency in relevant computer skills (including MS office, SPSS, STATA, etc.)
• ability to work in teams, willingness to work at flexible timings according to study requirements.