RfP – Capitalization of Integration of Kenema Hospital Services 12 views0 applications

Background

Sierra Leone has one of the highest maternal and under-five mortality rates in the world, driven by structural and social factors that hinder curative and preventative interventions for Maternal and child health.

Embedded in the Kenema district health system is the MSF’s Maternal and Child Hospital that is also a referral hospital and provides Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (CEmONC) and paediatric healthcare services. The MSF Kenema project was launched in 2017 to support the Kenema District Health Authorities in reducing maternal and child mortality and rebuilding a health workforce heavily affected by the Ebola outbreak.

In line with project design, the decision has been made to conclude the Kenema Hospital project by the end of 2028, following a phased handover to Kenema’s Health Authorities. The transition phase that precedes handover is the integration of the former MSF stand-alone hospital into the existing national health system. This integration and handover are structured in three distinct phases: Phase I: CEmONC integration, Phase II: Paediatrics integration, Phase III: handover of transversal services. Phase I has been completed, Phase II is ongoing, and Phase III will conclude toward the end of 2027.

Purpose and intended use

The MSF Stockholm Evaluation Unit is now requesting proposals to document and make sense of the tacit and experiential knowledge held by the actors directly involved in and supporting the integration and handover of the MSF‑Kenema Hospital to the Kenema District Health Authorities. This capitalization will reconstruct how the integration unfolded, why certain strategic and operational choices were made, and how actors navigated constraints, opportunities, and power dynamics throughout the process.

The primary intended use of this capitalization is to strengthen OCB’s institutional memory and organizational learning regarding handover processes of secondary‑level health facilities into national systems. Its main users will therefore be OCB operational, medical, and coordination teams involved in planning, supporting, or negotiating future transitions.

Starting date: July 2026

Anticipated planning:

• Inception report: August 2026
• Phase I – CEmONC Integration: Data collection: September 2026 / Phase I report: November 2026
• Phase II – Paediatrics Integration: Data collection: January 2027 / Phase II report: March 2027
• Phase III – Transversal Services Handover: Data collection: December 2027 / Phase III report: February 2028
• Final synthesis report: March 2028

Requirements:

• Proven experience in documentation, sense‑making, and learning‑oriented analysis, including reconstruction of complex processes.
• Advanced qualitative methods skills, including tacit‑knowledge elicitation, process tracing, and narrative reconstruction.
• Experience designing and facilitating participatory workshops and multi‑stakeholder sense‑making processes.
• Ability to manage multi‑phase, longitudinal learning exercises with iterative analysis and cross‑phase synthesis.
• Demonstrated expertise in health systems integration and service‑delivery transitions in LMIC settings.
• Experience working in humanitarian or fragile health system contexts.
• Experience and/or knowledge of the West Africa region.
• Excellent interpersonal and stakeholder communication skills.
• Fluency in English.

Assets:

• MSF experience or strong understanding of MSF operational models.
• Experience with large or complex health structures and multi-actor governance environments.
• Based in Sierra Leone or neighbouring countries, to facilitate in‑country visits and reduce travel‑related costs.

For more information on the context, deliverables, and requirements, please refer to the Terms of Reference linked at the end of this page: https://evaluation.msf.org/rfp-capitalization-integration-kenema-hospital-services