Senior Instructor/Assistant Professor, Community Eye Care Program, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences

Entity: Medical College

Location: Karachi, Pakistan

Introduction

Chartered in 1983, Aga Khan University (AKU) is a private, non-profit, autonomous and self-governing international university and healthcare organization with 13 teaching sites, 7 hospitals and 325 outreach and other health facilities located in 6 countries over three continents. An integral part of the Aga Khan Development Network, AKU provides higher education in several disciplines, carries out a wide range of research and has campuses, programs and teaching hospitals providing world class healthcare services in Kenya, Pakistan, Tanzania, Uganda, Afghanistan and UK with over 3,000 students and more than 17,000 employees. As an international institution, AKU operates on the core principles of quality, relevance, impact and access.

As an equal opportunity employer, AKU believes in promoting a diverse and inclusive culture and is committed to adopt appropriate standards for safeguarding and promoting a respectful relationship with and between diverse workforce of its faculty, staff, trainees, volunteers, beneficiaries, wider communities, and other stakeholders with whom it works, including children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees/trainees and partners to share this commitment.

The Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences (DOVS) provides a vibrant identity for ophthalmology at AKU that delivers subspecialized and multidisciplinary services integrated with an enabling environment that supports outstanding teaching/learning, research, partnerships, and leadership development. The department currently runs ophthalmology residency program, vitreoretinal fellowship program, and allied health training program. In line with its strategic priorities DOVS is actively expanding its Community Ophthalmology portfolio, with ongoing initiatives in school-based screening, community outreach, capacity building of teachers and frontline health workers, and strengthening if referral system across urban and remote settings through collaborations with AKDN partners, NGOs, and government stakeholders.

Position Overview

AKU invites applications for the position of Sr. Instructor/Assistant Professor within DOVS. The successful candidate will be based primarily at the main campus in Karachi and will play a key role in planning, designing and overseeing community eye health projects, while contributing to the development of a dedicated Community Ophthalmology section within DOVS.

Key Responsibilities

You will be responsible to:

• hold independent academic faculty status (Senior instructor/Assistant professor) at AKU.
• lead and oversee community programs as per strategic priorities and produce high-quality reports.
• actively participate in the teaching and mentoring of undergraduate and postgraduate learners (UGME, PGME, fellows, and graduate students as deemed appropriate).
• contribute to the development, delivery, and evaluation of ophthalmology training programs, and Continuing Medical Education (CME) activities.
• engage in departmental initiatives to strengthen and expand community ophthalmology services across AKU network sites.
• collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to support program implementation and partnerships.
• support development integrated eye care services across network hospitals and secondary care facilities.
• formulate, lead and governed community outreach programs, screening initiatives, and prevention of blindness activities
• collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to ensure continuity of care and appropriate referrals to tertiary services when needed.
• contribute to teaching and supervision of optometrists and allied ophthalmic personnel where applicable.
• support quality improvement initiatives, clinical governance, and adherence to AKU clinical practice guidelines.
• engage in capacity building and mentoring of local clinical teams across the network sites
• contribute to development of research proposals, grant applications, and funded projects in collaboration with department faculty, Collaborate with government bodies, NGOs, Civil Society institutions and National committee on eye health (NCEH) in program development and policy engagement.
• work closely in coordination with the department leadership, academic and research leads in implementation of operational and research projects.

Requirements

You should have:

• completed postgraduate qualification after MBBS: M.Sc./ MPhil/ PhD preferably in Community Ophthalmology and broadly in community health sciences Or MPhil/ PhD Optometry & vision sciences with special interest and experience in community health sciences, preferably for minimum two years.
• field experience in community eye care including project management and monitoring/evaluation will be preferred.
• experience of grant funding from government, national or international agencies.
• strong teamwork, communication, interpersonal, and leadership skills.
• demonstrate commitment to professional conduct and collaborative practice.
• willingness to travel to various locations nationally where AKU health network delivers ophthalmic services.

Comprehensive employment reference checks will be conducted.