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July 10, 2010
Associate Research Scientist / Research Scientist in Policy Economic Unit: International Vaccine Institute
Location: Seoul, South Korea
Full/Part Time: Full-Time
International Vaccine Institute (IVI):
The IVI is an International Organization established at the initiative of the United Nations Development Programme under the Vienna Convention of 1969 with the signatures so far of 40 countries and the World Health Organization. It is governed by an independent Board of Trustees and is located in Seoul, Korea. The IVI is an international center of research, training and technical assistance for vaccines needed in developing countries. Its major recent activities and accomplishments are:
- The creation of a multi-national team of scientists and technical specialists in clinical assistance, and training at its headquarters in Seoul and in sites in various developing countries.
- The formation of collaborative networks throughout Asia and elsewhere for studies of vaccines, which integrate the relevant disciplines of epidemiology, clinical trials, economic analysis, behavioral science, and policy analysis.
- The development of a multi-country, multidisciplinary program to accelerate the development and introduction of vaccines against the enteric infections cholera, Shigella, and typhoid fever.
- Measurement of the disease burden in Asian children of meningitis caused by Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib). Neisseria meningitides, and Streptococcus pneumoniae.
- The development of a multi-country, multidisplinary program in Japanese encephalitis to expand the use of existing vaccines and accelerate the development of new vaccines.
- The provision of technical assistance and training programs for vaccine production and regulation in developing countries.
- The formation of collaborative networks with vaccine manufacturers in developed and developing countries to accelerate vaccine research, development and technology transfer.
- The provision of training in clinical evaluation of vaccines in developing country settings.
- The formation of close collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) in setting priorities, defining strategies, and undertaking needed vaccine-related activities.
A major IVI strength is capacity building in vaccine research, development, production and regulation in developing countries.
General Description:
The Staff will be engaged in activities under the Policy and Economic Unit, under the Director General’s Office. Director, Policy and Economic (PE) Unit will be the immediate supervisor for the Staff. The PE Unit has a mandate to develop policy-based research, and to assist in policy formulation on vaccine development, promotion and financing, among the international community, governments, and other stakeholders, including pharmaceutical companies and non-government agencies in the IVI member countries. The PE Unit works closely with the Operations Units of the Translational Research Division (TRD) and the Pediatric Dengue Vaccine Initiative (PDVI) program, on their needs, such as developing proposals for conducting policy-based research, assisting in conducting these research and its analyses. Some areas of research include innovative financing strategies, provider payment systems and pricing strategies, willingness to pay studies, and cost of interventions or control of illness. Further, the PE is also engaged in the development of instruments and tools for preparing investment cases/feasibilities and monitoring, including using various economic tools, such as cost-effectiveness analyses, economic impact studies, and other areas as need arises.
Specific Task:
The Staff will be engaged on a specific assignment in the development of the Typhoid Vaccine Investment Case. The Investment Case estimates both the potential demand and supply of typhoid vaccines, as well as the impact and cost-effectiveness of typhoid vaccination, based on the demand and supply estimates. The Staff is expected to manage large and small datasets, and provide various analyses, which may require complex econometric tools (using STATA software), or simple analytical framework (such as cross-tables, simple regressions using Microsoft Excel software). The Staff should also be familiar with graphic and power point presentations tools. The Staff will be required to conduct field visits to collect relevant data for the analyses, conduct literature review and prepare summaries of relevant literature, prepare tables and charts. The Staff is also expected to prepare simple models and to conduct simulations under the supervision of the researchers.
Required Qualifications
The Candidate should have a PhD or a Master’s degree (with 5-years relevant experience) in economics/health economics, or health policy and financing, and relevant experience in the relevant areas of interest, such as in health economics, econometrics, health financing, or vaccine economics. The Candidate is expected to have strong analytical and quantitative skills, and should be fluent in verbal and written communication in English. The Candidate should be willing and able to travel.
To apply:
Letters of application, along with a current curriculum vitae, should be addressed to:
Ms. Eunsuk Kim
Senior Human Resources Assistant
International Vaccine Institute
San 4-8, Nakseongdae-dong, Kwanak-gu
Seoul, Korea 151-600
Tel: (82-2) 881-1177
Fax: (82-2) 881-1305
Email: eskim@ivi.int
