Internships at EurohealthNet

VACANCIES FOR TWO INTERNSHIPS AT EUROHEALTHNET

EuroHealthNet is a leading not for profit partnership of bodies responsible for public health and health promotion in EU states. Our Office is based in Brussels on Rue de La Loi close to the EU institutions. From here we coordinate research, policy and capacity building activities to help improve health determinants and address health inequalities. There are currently 11 people in the office plus rotating internships. You can read about our work at www.eurohealthnet.eu.
We are looking for two stagiaires, one for Health Promotion Europe (HPE) and one for our Centre for Innovation, Research and Implementation (CIRI)

Health Promotion Europe (HPE)

1. INTERNSHIP ON EUROPEAN STRUCTURAL AND INVESTMENT FUNDS FOR HEALTH

EuroHealthNet aims to support the EC Communication “Solidarity in Health: Reducing Health Inequalities in the EU” as well as the Social Investment Package (SIP) and support member states and regions to apply structural funds for health equity and the social determinants of health.
We produced a report on “Health Equity and Regional Development in the EU: Applying EU Structural Funds”, which provides practical tips and recommendations on how public health actors can use this important EU funding mechanism to improve and ensure a better distribution of health across society. EuroHealthNet also developed www.fundsforhealth.eu, an on-line tool providing information and examples on this theme. EuroHealthNet also manages the European Health Inequalities Portalwww.health-inequalities.eu.

About the Internship
EuroHealthNet is offering a paid internship (stagiaire) post based in Brussels, to help set up the ESIF help desk and support our capacity building activities in this area, to facilitate a further exchange and learning amongst health agencies in EU Member States.

Responsibilities Include:

• To monitor DG REGIO policies, EU Cohesion Policy, as well as ESIF developments and health related events related to the Committee of the Regions (CoR).
• To update the www.fundsforhealth.eu guidance tool to reflect the 2014-2020 programming period and add good practice examples for health equity.
• To maintain and develop a EuroHealthNet working group, by contacting members and other parties that expressed interest in its work, to identify any progress made in advocating for and applying EU Structural and Investment Funds to reduce health inequalities since the new programming period began in January 2014.
• Provide updates on the use of EU Structural and Investment Funds for Health Inequalities to members and partners of EuroHealthNet.
• To organise a webinar to exchange on and further explore experiences and future opportunities for public health authorities to apply Structural Funds to reduce health inequalities.
• To investigate potential funding opportunities for EuroHealthNet and Members under current EU Structural and Investment Fund programmes.
• To help update the www.health-inequalities.eu portal

Abilities Required

• Proven expertise and experience with EU Structural and Investment Funds. Please note that this is crucial. Those who do not meet this criteria need not apply;
• Good understanding of the fields of public health, health promotion and primary prevention and of the issue of health inequalities;
• Fluency in written and spoken English (native-speaker level). Other languages would be an advantage;
• Proficiency in IT skills (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, CMS);
• Familiar with websites management;
• Excellent organizational skills with ability to manage competing deadlines;
• Motivated Team Worker;
• Accurate and detail-oriented
• Commitment to complete the 6 months internship period

The European Centre for Innovation, Research and Implementation in Health & Well-being (CIRI)

2. INTERNSHIP ON ADVOCACY AND COMMUNICATIONS FOR DRIVERS

EuroHealthNet co-ordinates DRIVERS (www.health-gradient.eu), a three-year research project funded by the EU 7th Framework Programme. DRIVERS aims to promote health equity through policy and practice in early childhood development, employment & working conditions, and income & social protection. It does so by:

• Bringing together existing knowledge and testing theories about how the three key drivers affect health inequalities.
• Conducting novel data analyses using cohort and survey data, focus groups and interviews.
• Assessing existing research methodologies and suggesting more effective ones.
• Researching advocacy for health equity, and developing more effective means of advocating effectively.
• Conducting case studies across Europe, individually tailored to context.
• Developing recommendations for policy, research and practice.

About the Internship
To support and learn from the work of our experienced multinational team of professionals skilled in research, evaluation and knowledge transfer and translation, EuroHealthNet is offering a paid internship (stagiaire) post based in Brussels. The stagiaire will help further develop advocacy and dissemination work undertaken as part of DRIVERS.

Responsibilities Include:

• To help support interviews with high-level academics and other high-level stakeholders with knowledge about advocacy for health equity.
• To help develop a graphical advocacy for health equity toolkit.
• To produce fact sheets reporting scientific evidence to different audiences.
• To support the team with the organisation of high-level events and seminars and policy round tables
• To monitor relevant scientific and policy developments.
• To help develop our library of information through literature research and reporting.
• To keep the DRIVERS website up to date. This includes website administration but also the scanning of relevant events to be advertised on our websites, as well as contributing content.
• To help collate and edit information for the DRIVERS newsletter and Consortium Updates (the project’s internal newsletter aimed at project partners and third parties).
• Other tasks include supporting the team with the organisation of project-related meetings and taking notes and drafting minutes of meetings and teleconferences.

Abilities Required

• Proven communications background (education curriculum or equivalent experience);
• Good understanding of the fields of public health, health promotion and/or health inequalities, or of at least one of the following policy areas examined by the DRIVERS project: early childhood development, income and social protection, or employment and working conditions;
• Ability to grasp complex subjects quickly;
• Fluency in written and spoken English (native-speaker level). Other languages would be an advantage but are not essential;
• Ability to produce written material for a variety of different audiences and distil meaning from technical texts. Journalistic experience at some point during your academic or working experience would be a clear asset;
• Good ICT skills, including familiarity with graphic design, websites management (CSM) and MS Office software;
• Excellent organisational skills with ability to manage competing deadlines;
• Able to show initiative within multi-stepped tasks;
• Motivated and responsible team worker;
• Accurate and detail oriented;
• Commitment to complete the 6 months internship period.

PRACTICALITIES FOR BOTH INTERNSHIPS

Both posts will run up to 6 months from early July 2014 and are offered according to national conditions. They are available on a full-time basis.

The interns will report directly to EuroHealthNet’s Health Promotion Europe Manager as well as to the CIRI Research Manager.

All applicants must be qualified, eligible and able to work in Belgium.

To Apply:
Applicants should submit a CV (2 pages maximum) and cover letter (one page maximum). Please state your name and surname clearly in both documents.

Please address the following questions in your cover letter:

- What special skills/knowledge relevant to the specific internship can you bring to EuroHealthNet?
- What do you hope to gain from the experience of the specific internship?

Please also state the title of the internship that you are applying for clearly in the subject line of your e-mail, and include the CV and cover letter as attachments to the e-mail. Do not attach any other documents (e.g. recommendation letters) to your application at this stage. Please note that applications that do not follow these guidelines will be disregarded.

Please email your applications to Renaud Rollet, Administrator (r.rollet@eurohealthnet.eu)

The closing date for applying is Monday 30 June, 09.00 a.m. CET

Interviews will follow in the week commencing 30 June, to start as soon as possible.