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As a logistician working for Médecins Sans Frontières you are going to be crucial to the running of the medical program – every program has a logistician as an essential member of the team. You will work closely with a team of national staff to look after the pool of cars; maintain the communications equipment; organise supplies; ensure that the cold chain for vaccinations is not broken; oversee water and sanitation programs and coordinate the rehabilitation and construction of medical facilities. A very important aspect of working as a logistician with Médecins Sans Frontieres is that the medical side of the program will be the determinant of most of what a logistician will take on. If there is a cholera outbreak for instance, the logistician is vital in the setting up of the crucial water, sanitation and patient isolation needs of such a program. One person may not have all the skills mentioned above, but if you have good "handy man " skills you will be able to pick up a lot on the job. There are many written guidelines that have been produced plus training courses on water and sanitation and mechanics etc that Médecins Sans Frontières runs periodically. After a good broad experience with Médecins Sans Frontieres in the field there is the possibility of taking on a more responsible position as a logistics coordinator overseeing the logistics of all the programs in one country. STORIES FROM THE FIELD: Grant Somers I was based in Ghanzi, Afghanistan, long ago the capital of Central Asia, now a dusty truck-stop on the ancient trading route between Kabul and Kandahar. Once settled by Alexander the Great, later ransacked by Genghis Khan, now under construction by Médecins Sans Frontières. We were there to build a residential TB clinic, a straightforward enough job on paper but a logistical nightmare in reality. Organising a building project in an environment with no infrastructure (no water, no electricity, limited supplies and a low skill base) is a challenge at the best of times but to discover the site was on a former battlefield complicated things beyond our wildest expectations. Clearing a site of landmines and UXOs (unexploded ordinance), unearthing an anti-tank mine and a rocket were simply things that hadn’t been part of our initial game plan. When Enzibath, our main materials supplier, went missing for three days, construction ground to a halt. We sent word to the village seeking his whereabouts (and the whereabouts of the quarried stones needed for the footings of the clinic). His temporary disappearance was explained quite tragically when he arrived on site a few days later. Apparently, his nephew was killed and two mates had lost their legs while trying to extract dynamite from two unexploded rockets in an abandoned building. Dynamite, it seems, was fetching $10/rocket at the local bazaar. Some days were better than others. Some jobs were easier than others. Overall, I found being a log for Médecins Sans Frontières sometimes frustrating, often unpredictable, always challenging but, finally, rewarding. ESSENTIAL CRITERIA
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Commitment
to the aims and values of Médecins Sans Frontières