School

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Position Description

The Department of Global Health and Population at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health seeks to hire a Research Associate for the India Health System project. The India Health System project is a four-year large scale study that aims to advance India’s goal of universal health coverage—providing affordable and equitable access to good quality health care for all without major financial hardship, through rigorous research, executive training and mentoring promising junior health policy/system researchers in India. The work portfolio includes in-depth engagement with two states to conduct evidence-based assessment of the state’s health system performance and experimentation of innovative models of health financing, health care delivery, strategic purchasing and governance. A baseline (and corresponding end-line) survey of 7,500 households (approximately 50,000 individuals) and providers that represent the state’s health care delivery system in both the public and private sectors, together with routinely collected administrative data, form the base of the project’s empirical work. In addition to state-level engagement, the project contributes to policy analysis and dialogues for the recently announced Ayushman Bharat program at the national level.

This Research Associate position specifically focuses on developing and executing a research agenda, together with Professor Winnie Yip, on questions relating to differential behavioral responses of public/private providers to health policy interventions, the relative roles of the public/private providers in tertiary, secondary and primary health care, market interactions between the public and private sectors and health policy/system levers in improving the efficiency and quality of health care delivery in both the public and private sectors.

Specific responsibilities:

• Lead/contribute substantially to the design and execution of the research agenda relating to the public-private mix system in the two project states in India
• Contribute substantially to the design, implementation and evaluation of experiments in improving the quality and efficiency of health care provision in both the public and private sectors in the two project states
• Guide and supervise Boston-based research assistants in relevant areas of expertise
• Guide and train local collaborators if needed
• Write-up research results, including contributing to project reports and co/lead-authoring scientific papers and publishing in leading journals.
• Actively engage in dissemination activities and delivering effective presentations for various audiences
• Ensure the smooth execution of the research agenda

Significant travel and time in India will be required, approximately 35% of effort, to work with local partners and oversee project implementation.

Initial appointment is one year with potential to renew depending on funding and performance.

Basic Qualifications

• Doctoral qualification in fields related to health policy/health systems with strong disciplinary training in social science, especially in the fields of health economics, industrial organization or organizational behavior
• Excellent methodological skills especially in methods relevant for the study of market structure and behavior, and organizational behavior
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and collaboratively to fulfill the objectives and priorities of the project
• Experience in conducting field research in lower and middle income countries
• Excellent interpersonal skills and be able to collaborate with and supervise diverse partners
• Ability to travel and work independently

Additional Qualifications

• Prior experience in designing and/or implementing surveys
• Prior experience working in India
• Strong writing skills

Contact Information

Elizabeth Osborn

Contact Email

eosborn@hsph.harvard.edu

Equal Opportunity Employer

We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions or any other characteristic protected by law.