The foundation has an opportunity to support low and middle income countries (L/MICs) to accelerate improvements in population health outcomes by “leapfrogging” health systems into the future. In order to achieve this, it is critical for us to re-imagine the entirety of how public and private sector (mixed) health systems are designed, financed, managed and governed, not just individual pieces or parts of that system. Efforts to date in this space have often focused on pilots for tools and technologies that struggle to reach scale, lack sustainable business models, and fail to build the health system as a whole (not just a vertical disease area or a specific part of the patient engagement and care cascade). The Integrated Delivery team is seeking instead to shape the field of public health to catalyse systems-based transformation and “leapfrogging” of health systems-including approaches that embrace the entire patient and provider journey and not just one or a few aspects--through the foundation’s voice, convening power and catalytic funding. The team seeks to leverage a) the breadth of current knowledge about best practices, new tools, and new technologies (including Information, Communication, and Technology) from other country contexts and industries, and b) expand the art of the possible beyond current knowledge to meet future challenges in population health that will burden L/MIC health systems. These future-oriented solutions ought to facilitate future-fit health systems and business models that emphasize a continuum of care approach to manage preventive, acute and chronic care at the community, family, and individual levels, as well as empower people to be better agents of their own health care, in order to:
- Improve health outcomes and overall quality of health services
- Improve the efficiency of primary health care and encourage greater “vertical integration” of front line service delivery with secondary and tertiary care facilities using value-based health care and other approaches
- Reduce costs to the system, taking into account the fiscal realities of many LMICs
- Encourage greater equity in health systems access and outcomes.
Several health systems solutions are innovating and leapfrogging by increasing the productivity of health workers’ time through improved, technology-enabled diagnosis, triage, and remote prescriptions or through virtual services. Some are allowing individuals to assess whether they do indeed need to seek care, often saving their precious travel time and money. However, a number of solutions are offered in a fragmented manner and without a systems lens; we seek to change this. There is also an important quality angle, as some digital tools are backstopping health workers’ decision-making to improve adherence to standards and boost quality.
The SPO will be responsible for a spectrum of program and technical activities, including grant management, research and analytics, strategic planning, technical advice/assistance, communication and internal and external relationship management. She/he will work closely to align and drive a coherent agenda to catalyse innovations in health systems and leapfrogging, working with both internal stakeholders (Integrated Delivery, and many teams across the foundation interested in health systems business models of the future, including technology-enabled health systems and service delivery, e.g. Family Planning, MNCH, India/Africa country teams, the Strategy, Data, and Analytics Team, and the Innovative Technology Solutions team) as well as private sector innovators and investors and other external partners (including other funders). Reporting to a Deputy Director in the Integrated Delivery team, the SPO will have the following core responsibilities:
- Build an ecosystem of partners that can continually identify, test, evaluate, and learn from the global best practices and exemplars in technology-enabled systems and service delivery design and execution to promote improve health system models
- Form innovative partnerships and external coalitions that may serve to catalyze new sustainable, digitally-enabled business models for population health (whether through public or private sector channels)
- Work with external partners to design and inform L/MIC health systems of the future; disseminate future-fit system insights with internal foundation teams and external agencies (e.g. USAID/UNICEF community health strategy) to inform their strategies, investments and activities
- Spend up to 20% of time supporting BMGF country offices (Nigeria, Ethiopia, South Africa, India) to help them identify local partners, design partnerships, and inform and help shape their health systems and service delivery investments to be future-fit. This will include support to revise and update policies, regulations, and financing mechanisms to incent the launch and scale of these new health systems business models.
- Partner with and support other teams (e.g., FP, MNCH) to design and scale future-fit, often technology-enabled service delivery solutions
- Support BMGF leadership learning agenda around future health systems and leapfrogging opportunities (including, but not limited to and technology-enabled systems and service delivery)
- Knowledge management (internal and external) on innovations in health systems design, execution, and leapfrogging
- Explore solutions that enable citizens, and especially poor women and girls, to be empowered and informed agents of their own health care
- Work with BMGF’s program-related investments (PRI) team to identify private sector firms that could use concessional financing to scale up their future health system and technology-enabled service delivery offering, especially to low income people
- Lead the landscaping of potential grantees and partners for multiple BMGF teams to collaborate with for specific strategic and investment needs
- Proven experience in designing, managing, and/or driving innovation in health systems of the future
- Experience living in low- or lower-middle income countries, or middle income countries for at least 3 years while working on innovative health systems business models
- Demonstrated experience in evaluating effectiveness and efficiency of health systems/models
- Strong familiarity with health systems ICT solutions and the “health-tech” world, including its investors, implementers, and innovators, especially those with relevance to MICs and LMICs
- Experience working in a matrixed, complex organization
- Working familiarity with the global health and development aid architecture
- Demonstrated track record of working in program design and implementation; strong capabilities in change management, strategic planning, and financial analysis
- An “investor’s mindset”, able to understand ROI, risk, and catalytic potential of ideas, investments, and bodies of work
- Diplomatic and highly adaptable, able to cope with competing and even conflicting agendas; able to maintain decorum and build internal coalitions; high emotional intelligence and self-awareness
- Entrepreneurial and energetic; ability to navigate and even thrive in ambiguity
- Superior written and communication skills with diverse set of stakeholders and executive level audiences
- A sense of humor is required, as is a “campaign mentality” i.e. no job is too big or too small or too hard
- Must be able to travel up to 35% domestically and internationally