Senior Research Officer

icddr,b is a Bangladesh-based international health research institute that strives to solve key public health problems through high-quality scientific research and innovation. icddrb as a value-based organization encourages women and people with disabilities.

The Senior Research Officer will work under a research project, funded by the NIHR Global Health Research Development Awards. The project aims to address the growing concern over unnecessary C-sections in Bangladesh. By employing a complex systems approach, the initiative aims to engage diverse stakeholders to build a shared understanding of the problem and co-design innovative solutions. Key activities include participatory evidence synthesis, stakeholder engagement, capacity building, and the co-creation of a research program to pilot and evaluate strategies for reducing unnecessary C-sections while ensuring access to essential procedures. The project aspires to lay the groundwork for sustainable improvements in maternal and child health outcomes. 

Duties and responsibilities:  

• The Senior Research Officer will report to Research Investigator and will be responsible for supporting research and data collection, contributing to identifying potential stakeholders, documenting and reporting and overall project coordination.

The specific areas of responsibilities are detailed below:

• Assist in conducting evidence synthesis, participatory workshops, and deliberative dialogues with stakeholders;
• Support desk-based reviews of existing literature and data;
• Collect, process, and analyze both qualitative and quantitative data from field activities and stakeholder workshops;
• Contribute to identifying potential stakeholders across diverse stakeholder groups and effectively building and sustaining relationships to engage these stakeholders in the project activities;
• Collaborate with diverse stakeholders, including healthcare professionals, policymakers, and community representatives;
• Assist in organizing and facilitating stakeholder workshops, ensuring inclusive participation;
• Document and report stakeholder feedback for integration into project report;
• Participate in training sessions on participatory evidence synthesis, complex systems thinking, and research methodologies;
• Apply learnings from training sessions to project activities;
• Assist in preparation of research briefs and reports in English and Bangla for various stakeholders;
• Contribute to the creation of visual and narrative representations of findings;
• Work closely with the Principal Investigator (PI) and Research Investigator to ensure project milestones are met;
• Provide logistical and administrative support for workshops, field activities, and dissemination events;
• Coordinate with team members and external collaborators to maintain smooth project operations;
• Support the co-creation of a follow-on research proposal.
• Assist in identifying and developing plausible interventions based on stakeholder input and evidence synthesis.

Required qualification and experience:

• Master’s degree in Public Health, Social Sciences, Anthropology or a related field.
• At least 5-6 years of experience in health research, particularly maternal and child health or health systems research.
• Must have familiarity with both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies.
• Prior experience of participatory research approaches and evidence synthesis will be an advantage.

Source: https://career.icddrb.org/vacancy-preview/32037