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Qualifications
1.ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Purpose of consultancy
This purpose of this consultancy is to provide technical support to the WCO and Ministry of Health (MoH) to support the implementation of the Integrated Diseases Surveillance (IDS) strategy developed by the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean to establish a structured coordination mechanism, ensuring alignment between several national efforts.
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Jordan has prioritized surveillance integration by harmonizing event-based surveillance (EBS) with its existing indicator-based surveillance (IBS), to create a comprehensive electronic early warning system for detecting and responding to public health threats. This integrated approach strengthens real-time threat detection, improves response coordination and ensures a proactive public health system.
Even when systems exist, they often have poor data quality and lack completeness, making them suboptimal for decision-making, and many countries lack the technical and operational capacity to harmonize data from surveillance sources.
Financial constraints pose a major challenge. Funding is often inadequate, and vertical programmes tend to be prioritized over integrated approaches. Donor-driven surveillance systems compound the problem by focusing on short-term goals rather than sustainable, long-term solutions embedded in health systems. Lack of collaboration among surveillance actors weakens the ability to address health threats comprehensively. Without strong coordination across sectors and levels efforts to integrate surveillance systems will remain fragmented.
WHOโs Jordan Country Office US-CDC has played a pivotal role in developing national EBS guidelines, strengthening data-sharing mechanisms between IBS and EBS and providing ongoing technical support. This has resulted in a significant increase in validated health signals, demonstrating the effectiveness of an integrated surveillance approach in detecting and controlling public health threats more efficiently.
With strong momentum behind IBS-EBS integration, MoH, in collaboration with WHO, will be expanding EBS to community-based surveillance, ensuring real-time reporting at the grassroots level, particularly among migrants, refugees and underserved populations. Plans are also underway to upgrade the electronic EBS system to handle higher data volumes, enhance system interoperability and develop a mobile application to facilitate real-time reporting and multisectoral engagement.
By fully integrating EBS and IBS, Jordan will be creating a powerful, unified surveillance system that leverages structured data with real-time intelligence, allowing for rapid risk assessment, faster outbreak response and improved public health security.
The IDS Technical Working Group (IDS TWG), composed of key departments including the Health Emergencies Programme (WHE), Polio Eradication, the Science, Information and Dissemination Department (SID), the Communicable Disease Control Department (DCD)), serve as the primary governing body at the national level. The governance body provides strategic guidance, oversees IDS implementation and ensures harmonized support across the country. Additionally, technical sub-committees have been established to provide expertise in governance and advocacy, digital health solutions, laboratory integration and resource mobilization.
At the country level, WHO country office IDS focal points liaise with national IDS governing bodies to facilitate effective surveillance integration and operationalization. This structured approach enhances timely information exchange, coordinated outbreak response and capacity-building initiatives, ensuring a stronger, more resilient regional disease surveillance system.
Stakeholders and partners play a vital role in supporting IDS implementation. Resource partners are encouraged to fund national surveillance systems. Technical partners, academia, national public health institutes, NGOs and UN agencies are encouraged to actively contribute to capacity-building, and operational implementation.
The synergistic effect of integrating IBS, EBS and multisectoral reporting will result in a stronger, faster and more agile public health system. Now, IBS validates and quantifies emerging threats detected by EBS, while EBS enhances IBS by capturing early warning signals that traditional surveillance might miss.
Phase One: two months in 2025 to identifies and prepare for the automated modulesย
This starts with a preliminary assessment for the selected systems and modules, which should ideally be the national Jordanian Electronic reporting and surveillance system JIERS identified in the pandemic fund activities., the consultants should support to add, modify, or train staff as needed.
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3.ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Work to be performed
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These activities will be implemented in two phases: the first covering two months during the current year, and the second covering Eight months in the following year including supporting MOH in any needed request for Jordan Infectious Diseases Interactive Surveillance (JIDIS) and Jordan Interactive Electronic Reporting System (JIERS).ย
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Work to be performed within phase one
-ย ย ย Prepare a summary on the enabling factors agreed with all stakeholders including data dictionary, evidence, policies, documents, that efficiently describe coordination interpretation of CD surveillance data and information exchange using JIERS.
-ย ย ย ย ย Conduct focus group discussion with relevant technical working groups to discuss results and find solutions.
-ย ย ย ย ย Prepare an action plan for detailed activities and timeline
-ย ย ย ย Linkage between epidemiological and laboratory data at JIERS, in addition to any functional at MOH, and any Existing functional system for Communicable diseases such as DHIS 2 for TB.
-ย ย ย ย ย Draft a plan for pilot project and scale up including camps, private sector and RMS.
-ย ย ย Develop an Epi analytical dashboard for JIDIS using oracle (Data Base) according to MOH requirements to include Epi curves, maps, and threshold detection. The analytical dashboard should be flexible to be maintained by MoH staff.
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Output 1: Provide Practical IT Solutions for interoperability and data exchange mechanisms between the existing electronic reporting systems (data exchange between electronic medical reports, laboratory data, mortality registration and surveillance) aiming at consolidation
Deliverable 1.1: Desk Review for MOH, standalone electronic platforms and develop a plan for IDS for CD, the plan should include solutions to integrate the existing systems for CD at MOH and all reporting sites that will be part of the national electronic reporting systems at private sector, RMS, academic institutions and inside the camps, in addition to the linkage with the CPHL.
Deliverable 1.2: Facilitate workshop to discuss the results analysis with all above mentioned partners.ย
Deliverables 1.3: Deliver report for the achieved results and next steps for year 2026 plan.
Deliverable 1.4: Develop Modules for IBS, EBS IDS for CD vertical programs at MOH including ZD, HIV, TB, VBD, NTD. including Data flow description with a proposal for short-, medium- and long-term convergences and the ability to migrate JIDIS to JIERS.
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Output 2: Write a comprehensive chapter describing electronic reporting system at central and peripheral level for different CD programs added to IDS national guidelines for all vertical programs and Lab that will be connected with JIERS. Using interoperability standards HL7/FHIR Standards.
Deliverable 2.1: Draft and finalize a comprehensive chapter detailing the architecture, functions, and workflows of electronic reporting systems at both central and peripheral levels, integrated within the IDS national guidelines.
Deliverable 2.2: Prepare visual process maps and system diagrams illustrating data flow, roles, and interaction points across different CD program reporting platforms.
Deliverable 2.3: Create a set of user manuals and training materials tailored for MoH staff operating the reporting systems at various administrative levels.
Deliverable 2.4: Facilitate a validation workshop with key stakeholders to review and endorse the chapter content prior to integration into the national guidelines.
Deliverable 2.5: Hold regular communication surveillance data through reports, dashboard, bulletins.
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Output 3: Conduct one day workshop to present the results for partnersโ feedback including:
Presenting a full description of the national IDS implementation operations related to (information technology component with relevant stakeholders including plans for sustainability, finance, infrastructure, human resources according to WHO strategy implementation for Integrated Diseases Surveillance.
Zoonotic diseases reporting at the human animal interface
Interoperability of different systems (AMR, HIV, TB, ZD) sentinel surveillance
Connecting the laboratory with Epi data
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Deliverable 3.1: Organize and facilitate a national workshop, ensuring participation of all relevant stakeholders to present and discuss the national IDS implementation operations, with a focus on sustainability, financing, infrastructure, and human resources in alignment with WHO strategy.
Deliverable 3.2: Prepare a comprehensive workshop report summarizing feedback from partners on IDS implementation, zoonotic disease reporting, system interoperability, and laboratory-epidemiological data integration, including actionable recommendations for program enhancements.
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4.ย ย Qualifications, experience, skills and languages
ย ย ย Educational Qualifications:
First University degree (Bachelorโs degree) in IT system development and programming.
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Experience:
Essential:
Minimum of 5 yearsโ experience in system automation, preferably in medical/ public health information systems.
Practical working experience in developing modules for Communicable diseases using different IT languages (Oracle, R, ADF, etc.).