EpiC Moldova Consultant - Data Analyst and Economist

EpiC Moldova Consultant - Data Analyst and Economist

Organization: Palladium, EpiC Moldova

Location: Moldova.

Level of effort: Part-time consultancy from April through September 2026.

Reports to: EpiC Moldova Infectious Diseases Advisor / EpiC Moldova Country Activity Manager.

Type of assignment: national / local consultancy.

Project Overview

Meeting Targets and Maintaining Epidemic Control (EpiC) is a global health initiative project funded by United States Department of State (DoS) for the period of 2019-2027.

The project receives Global Health Security funding to strengthen global, regional, and local public health systems, building on broad experience and existing capabilities that align with GHS priorities, National Action Plans for Health Security (NAPHS), and US Government goals.

EpiC is led by FHI 360 with core partners Right to Care (RTC), Palladium International, and Population Services International (PSI), and draws upon regional and local partners. The project delivers high-quality technical assistance at the community, facility, district, regional and national levels, and builds relationships with relevant partners working to address health security issues. Our ability to respond quickly to program, technical and procurement needs leverage our deep bench of country-based clinical, program, and community experts.

Among the most urgent priorities to prevent, detect, and respond to public health threats related to emerging infectious disease include:

1. Provide technical and operational support to the NAPH to strengthen the Public Health Emergency Operations Center (PHEOC), including the development and refinement of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), data reporting mechanisms, and coordination processes to ensure timely and effective outbreak response.

1. Support enhancing the reporting and use of data for decision-making through the establishment of real-time dashboards and analytical tools. This will also include support for the development and implementation of a context-specific EMCE approach focused on priority pathogens and high-risk antimicrobial resistant pathogens.

1. Support landscape assessment of Moldova's digital health and data sharing policies focused on surveillance and reporting of priority pathogens and antimicrobial use (AMU) and antimicrobial resistance. This activity will identify gaps, interoperability challenges, and opportunities to align with international standards and best practices.

1. Strengthen the capacity of priority hospitals to implement effective infection prevention and control (IPC) measures and improve their ability to conduct outbreak surveillance. This will include training, provision of technical guidance, and integration of hospital-level data into national reporting systems.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a growing threat to health security, economic growth, and health system sustainability in Moldova. Developing a credible, policy-relevant investment case for AMR and antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) is essential to mobilize resources.

This activity will support the development of the first phase of an AMR investment case that combines global and proxy data with emerging country-specific epidemiologic, costing, and health system information. The investment case will frame AMR not only as a health issue, but also as a constraint on economic productivity, EU alignment, cross-border surveillance obligations, pandemic preparedness, and food safety and security.

EpiC is seeking to recruit a local / national Data Analyst and Economist to support analytical work underpinning the AMR investment case by collecting, compiling, cleaning, and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data related to costs, health outcomes, service utilization, infrastructure, and health system performance, under the direction of the Health Economist.

Tasks:

The Data Analyst and Economist will provide hands-on analytical and data management support to the team, ensuring that costing analyses, economic assessments, and modeling exercises are grounded in high-quality, well-documented data. The role is designed for an economist or analyst with strong quantitative skills who is seeking applied experience in health economics, AMR, and health system analysis.

The EpiC team will establish a credible analytical foundation for the AMR Investment Case activity by:

• Validating priority AMR and AMS interventions, with a particular focus on Moldova's National Action Plan on AMR and EpiC's antimicrobial stewardship activity.

• Estimating the health and economic burden of AMR, including:

• Conducting an analysis of health system costs (e.g., prolonged hospital stays, overutilization of health care services, including ICU, use of last-line antibiotics, laboratory and infection prevention and control costs).

• Broader economic impacts (e.g., productivity losses, preventable mortality, outbreak risks).

• Conducting health economic analyses to support policy decisions, including a costing analysis of:

• implementing AMS programs at the facility level (hospital).

• Projecting health system investments required for IPC strengthening, laboratory-clinical integration, and digitalized surveillance.

• Supporting the process of modeling the link between targeted investments and measurable outcomes such as reduced inappropriate antimicrobial use, reduced hospital-acquired infections, and improved outbreak detection.

Scope of Work and Key Responsibilities

Under this Scope of Work, the Data Analyst and Economist will be responsible for the following:

Data Collection and Compilation

• Support the design, piloting, and implementation of data collection tools related to:

• Health system costs (e.g., hospital services, laboratory diagnostics, IPC, antimicrobials).

• Service utilization and patient pathways.

• Health infrastructure, staffing, and capacity.

• AMS and IPC program inputs and activities.

• Collect primary data from pilot and comparator hospitals, national institutions, and administrative sources through interviews and data reviews with medical staff, laboratory staff, pharmacists, epidemiologists, and hospital administrators.

• Compile secondary data from routine health information systems, hospital records, reimbursement databases, national reports, and published literature.

• Maintain organized, well-documented datasets with clear metadata and version control.

Data Cleaning, Validation, and Quality Assurance

• Clean and prepare datasets for analysis, including consistency checks, outlier identification, and documentation of assumptions and limitations.

• Conduct data quality assessments and flag gaps, inconsistencies, or missing information for discussion with the Health Economist.

• Support reconciliation of data from multiple sources to ensure analytical coherence across costing and modeling exercises.

Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis Support

• Conduct descriptive and exploratory analyses of:

• Costs and resource use.

• Health outcomes and utilization patterns.

• AMS and IPC implementation indicators.

• Support basic statistical analyses under guidance from the Health Economist, including trend analysis and comparisons across facilities.

• Prepare analysis outputs (tables, figures, charts) suitable for technical reports, presentations, and policy briefs.

Support to Costing and Modeling Workstreams

• Assist in populating costing models, spreadsheets, and analytical frameworks developed by the team.

• Support the adaptation of global or regional AMR economic models to the Moldovan context by assembling and validating country-specific parameters.

• Help document assumptions, data sources, and methodological choices used in costing and modeling analyses.

Documentation and Reporting

• Contribute to technical briefs, analytical notes, annexes, and draft sections of reports related to the AMR investment case.

• Prepare clear and well-structured data summaries for internal review and stakeholder consultations.

• Support preparation of materials for technical meetings, validation workshops, and stakeholder presentations.

Collaboration

• Work closely with the Health Economist, Senior AMR Advisor, and Moldova-based team members to ensure alignment across analytical workstreams.

• Participate in technical meetings with national stakeholders as required, providing analytical inputs or data summaries.

• Support knowledge transfer by documenting processes and contributing to simple guidance materials or analytical templates when requested.

Qualifications and experience:

• Bachelor's degree in Economics, Health Economics, Statistics, Public Health, or a closely related field (Master's degree preferred).

• 3 years of relevant experience in data analysis, economic analysis, health systems research, or related analytical roles.

• Strong quantitative skills and experience working with large datasets.

• Proficiency in Excel; working knowledge of at least one statistical or data analysis package (e.g., R, Stata, Python, or SPSS).

• Ability to organize, clean, and document data in a systematic and reproducible manner.

• Familiarity with health system data, costing studies, or economic evaluations.

• Experience supporting hospital-level data collection or analysis.

• Fluency in Romanian required. Professional proficiency in English and/or Russian required.

• Strong attention to detail and commitment to data quality.

• Analytical curiosity and willingness to learn new methods and tools.

• Ability to work independently while taking direction and feedback from others.

• Strong time management skills and ability to meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.

• Collaborative and professional approach to working in multidisciplinary and multicultural teams.

Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skills, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

Application details All qualified candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position through our online portal.

About Palladium:

Palladium is a global company working to design, develop and deliver positive impact on the lives and livelihoods of people around the globe; broaden access to health, water, power, and infrastructure; build enduring, sustainable, and transformative institutions and market systems to address global challenges; and conserve the natural world. We operate in over 90 countries and have a workforce of 2,100 talented, motivated, and diverse staff of all religions, races, languages, and gender identities.

Palladium is part of GISI's global family of companies, which aims to create solutions for the world's most complex challenges. With annual revenues of $14 billion, GISI's approximately 15,000 employees are engaged in projects across 100 countries worldwide providing construction, program/project management, and engineering consulting services.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or status as a protected veteran.

Should you require any adjustments or accommodations to be made due to a disability or you are a neurodivergent individual, or for any other circumstance, please email our team at accessibility@thepalladiumgroup.com and we will be in touch to discuss.

Safeguarding - We define Safeguarding as "the preventative action taken by Palladium to protect our people, clients and the communities we work with from harm". We are committed to ensuring that all children and adults who come into contact with Palladium are treated with respect and are free from abuse. All successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced selection process including safeguarding-focused interviews and a rigorous due diligence process.