Consultant – Strengthen Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (EmONC) and Postpartum Hemorrhage (PPH) Management in Papua New Guinea

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world's largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you're a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.

Excessive bleeding after childbirth, or PPH, is the leading cause of maternal death worldwide, and
the majority of these could be avoided by using prophylactic uterotonics during the third stage of
labor, more accurate diagnosis, and appropriate, timely treatment. Many challenges hinder the
provision of quality, evidence-based, lifesaving care in low- and middle- income countries. Reflecting
these continuous challenges, several new and/or underutilized WHO-recommended maternal health
products have emerged, including heat-stable carbetocin and tranexamic acid, and calibrated drapes
and other products for objective measurement of postpartum blood loss.
Papua New Guinea (PNG) has one of the highest maternal mortality ratios in the Pacific region, with
postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) estimated to account for 25–30% of maternal deaths. The country’s
geography and service delivery context present unique challenges: a high majority of the population
lives in rural and remote areas, with limited access to functioning EmONC facilities; home births
remain common, particularly where facilities are inaccessible; PNG is frequently affected by
humanitarian crises—including floods, drought, volcanic eruptions, and conflict around elections—
further disrupting maternal health services; and supply chain challenges hinder progress, including
cold chain constraints within EmONC facilities.
Despite current efforts to improve EmONC care in PNG, including an initiative by UNFPA, UNICEF,
and WHO to roll out trainings across districts, new detection and treatment protocols are not yet
incorporated into the training packages or national guidelines. In addition, uptake of existing
interventions, such as misoprostol for prevention of PPH, is hindered by access and socio-
demographic barriers. For these reasons and more, PNG represents an opportunity to learn from
and influence how best to protect and integrate EmONC during humanitarian preparedness and
response stages.
Given these challenges, a dedicated consultancy is needed to review the current situation, identify
system and policy gaps, and propose evidence-based, feasible actions to strengthen EmONC and PPH
care in PNG.
Scope of work
The overall objective of this consultancy is to conduct a comprehensive situational analysis of
EmONC and PPH prevention and management in PNG, and to develop an actionable implementation
roadmap for strengthening maternal health systems and introducing new PPH commodities,
particularly within existing preparedness mechanisms and policies.
Specific Objectives:

Assess the current landscape of EmONC and specifically PPH care within PNG —coverage,
quality, and readiness.
Analyze how preparedness policies address EmONC, and how well the services have been
delivered within recent responses.
Examine the readiness for HSC and TXA introduction, including registration, procurement,
training, and data systems, and considerations for introduction of calibrated drapes.
Identify barriers and enablers related to EmONC service delivery, and PPH prevention and
treatment, including community engagement, referral pathways and access challenges, and
service delivery.
Document stakeholder perspectives on how the landscape of PNG, including cyclical extreme
weather events, affects EmONC delivery, waste management, and supply chain.
Examine how underserved and vulnerable populations, particularly indigenous populations,
are reached and included, or not, within the current EmONC system.
Engage national stakeholders to validate findings and co-develop recommendations.
Produce a roadmap for action.
Timeline:
We anticipate the consultancy beginning in early January 2026, with a completion deadline of
mid-April 2026.
Deliverables:
1. Inception report (desk review, proposed methodology, site selection, and data collection
tools)
2. Situational analysis report and slide deck on EmONC and PPH care
3. Stakeholder consultation workshop report
4. Final report and implementation roadmap
Payment Rate and Schedule:
The consultancy is expected to have a daily rate of approximately 2100 PNK or 500 USD. The
consultant will be asked to keep an hourly timesheet, and will be paid out at major milestones. The
consultancy is capped at 70 days of work.
Milestone 1: Inception report
Milestone 2: Situational analysis report
Milestone 3: Final report
Requirements:
Qualitative research experience required; quantitative research also preferred
- Demonstrated experience working in low-resource and humanitarian contexts; Pacific
experience preferred.
- Strong analytical, facilitation, and report-writing skills.
- Experience/understanding of the humanitarian contexts and key actors, and ideally with the
Global Health Cluster system, preferred
- Experience/knowledge of sexual and reproductive health required; technical knowledge of
maternal and newborn health, and postpartum hemorrhage is preferred
- Excellent English writing skills required
- Willingness to travel to insecure regions of PNG preferred, particularly those most recently
affected by earthquake/landslide/floods

Please submit your CV to elaine.scudder@rescue.org by 10 December.

PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS

All International Rescue Committee workers must adhere to the core values and principles outlined in IRC Way - Standards for Professional Conduct. Our Standards are Integrity, Service, Equality and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Safeguarding, Conflicts of Interest, Fiscal Integrity, and Reporting Wrongdoing and Protection from Retaliation. IRC is committed to take all necessary preventive measures and create an environment where people feel safe, and to take all necessary actions and corrective measures when harm occurs. IRC builds teams of professionals who promote critical reflection, power sharing, debate, and objectivity to deliver the best possible services to our clients.

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