International Medical Secretary

Location: Geneva, Switzerland

Contract: Full-time contract subject to a minimum term of 3 years, renewable once

Starting date: 01st March 2027

Deadline to apply: 30th October 2026

Compensation and benefits: MSF practice is to offer the C&B package current in the MSF entity establishing the contract.

CONTEXT

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international, independent, medical humanitarian organisation that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, healthcare exclusion and natural disasters. MSF offers assistance to people based only on need and irrespective of race, religion, gender or political affiliation. MSF International is the legal entity that binds MSF’s 24 sections, 28 associations and 19 branch offices together.

MSF International provides coordination, representation, information and support to the MSF movement and implements international projects and initiatives as requested. As a medical humanitarian organization, medical leadership is central to MSF’s social mission, enabling the organization to provide medical quality care to populations in need.

The International Medical Secretary (IMS) is the most senior executive medical leadership role in MSF International. The position sits at the intersection of medical, operational, executive, and associative dynamics and ensures that MSF’s medical identity, medical-operational priorities, and ethical considerations are reflected in movement-wide discussions and decision-making. The IMS works in close collaboration with the International President (IP), the International Secretary General (ISG), medical and operational leadership platforms, and other international stakeholders, while overseeing the International Medical Secretariat. Overall, the IMS currently oversees 56 colleagues and a EUR 6.6. million budget.

As a member of the MSF International Office (IO) Leadership Team (LT), the IMS also contributes to IO direction, policy and other movement priorities.

PURPOSE OF THE JOB

As the most senior executive medical leader in MSF International, the IMS works jointly with the IP and ISG in ensuring coherence between the executive and associative arms of the MSF movement, enforcing accountability and implementation of medical operations according to the MSF Charter and Principles, and promoting leadership with integrity.

It provides strategic medical leadership across MSF International to strengthen MSF’s medical identity, guide medical-operational priorities, and ensure that executive and movement-wide decision-making are informed by medical, ethical, and operational considerations.

Chairs the relevant international medical-operational platform(s) and leads the International Medical Secretariat in order to support coherence, accountability, and forward-looking positioning of MSF on key medical humanitarian issues.

Represents MSF on selected high level external medical platforms, leading MSF’s international medical positioning on priority issues, influencing the greater global health discourse and ensuring MSF is equipped to engage with a changing humanitarian and global health environment.

ACCOUNTABILITIES OF THE ROLE

1. Provide strategic medical leadership to MSF International, including ethical oversight

The incumbent will provide senior medical perspective to MSF Movement executive leadership, promoting the centrality of medical operations in the articulation of the organization’s humanitarian identity and strategic direction.

They ensure that medical operations, ethics, quality of care, patient-centered approaches, and safeguarding are central to MSF’s humanitarian identity and strategic direction. The role provides senior leadership on key medical-operational issues, institutional positioning, and implications for the movement; oversees quality assurance and supports the development of medical policies across fields. It fosters innovation, learning, and cross-movement exchange on evolving medical practices and standards and leads the International Medical Secretariat. As a member of the Leadership Team, they contribute to strong cross-functional collaboration and the effective functioning of the International Office.

As a result, the medical priorities, medical identity, and medical-operational realities are reflected in movement-wide direction and executive decision-making.

2. Lead and steward collective medical-operational reflection and prioritization and strengthen coherence and collaboration across medical, operational, executive, and associative bodies

The incumbent will chair the Medical-Operational Directorate Platform, setting its strategic direction and enabling collective decision-making on major medical-operational issues. They will facilitate shared analysis, alignment, and follow-up on priority medical-operational challenges, opportunities, innovations, and cross-movement investments.

The role is expected to maintain effective links between relevant MSF international platforms and medical/operational actors, bringing forward key concerns and recommendations and supporting mutual understanding across strategic, executive, and operational levels. They will collaborate closely in steering MSF Access.

As a result, MSF’s international medical priorities are coherent, relevant, and actionable across the movement; and key medical issues are connected across the movement

3. Lead the medical-operational mutual accountability processes

The role oversees the annual medical-operational mutual accountability exercise, including reporting, analysis, and reflection processes. It provides recommendations to executive platforms and ensures communication on the process and its outcomes, supporting critical reflection on operational relevance, medical strategy, implementation of agreed ambitions, and accountability against movement priorities and international commitments.

MSF will have stronger collective reflection, learning, and follow-up on medical-operational performance and commitments.

4. Lead MSF’s international medical positioning on priority issues and represent MSF externally

The incumbent will identify priority medical and medical-operational issues requiring movement-wide positioning, representation, or engagement, in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, while supporting the development of coherent medical messaging and positioning with internal stakeholders. They will represent MSF with selected external actors, networks, and partners on strategic medical humanitarian issues, and contribute to guiding DNDi.

MSF will thus be better equipped to engage with a changing humanitarian and global health environment and influences relevant health stakeholders as adequate. In close collaboration with MSF technical representation by IMC.

AUTONOMY, COMPLEXITY

Autonomy to think and act

The IMS operates with a high degree of autonomy within the mandate of the role, setting priorities for the International Medical Secretariat and exercising independent judgment on complex medical-operational, ethical, and representational matters. The role is expected to advise senior leadership, represent externally, shape agendas, set and advance medical policies, and determine how to advance collective medical priorities, while aligning with MSF’s governance, executive frameworks, and institutional direction.

Complexity of the environment

The role operates in a highly complex international environment involving multiple governance and executive bodies, diverse operational directorates, cross-sectional dynamics, and evolving humanitarian and global health challenges. It requires navigating ambiguity, balancing medical, operational, political, and associative perspectives, and building alignment in situations where interests, priorities, and interpretations may differ.

SAFEGUARDING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ROLE

The incumbent commits to contribute to a safe, supportive, inclusive, equitable, diverse, respectful and healthy workplace, free from abuse and other misconduct. They will not engage in any form of abuse, including those detailed in the MSF Typologies of Abuse. When an employee suspects or observes abuse, they will report it, without investigating it, to protect others.

• Ensure respectful management and communication at all levels.

• Ensure that staff and consultants under their supervision understand their responsibilities regarding expected behaviour and reporting abuse while working for MSF.

• Welcome complainants, guide colleagues towards the appropriate channels without investigating, and promote a working environment that does not tolerate abuse or inappropriate behaviour.

• Ensure that staff know how to raise concerns and are kept informed of reporting mechanisms.

Education

• Medical doctorate essential.

• Postgraduate qualification in public health, global health, humanitarian medicine, health policy, management, or a related field is desirable.

Experience

• Extensive senior leadership experience in complex international environments in medical humanitarian contexts.

• Proven leadership of multidisciplinary teams across multiple locations;

• strong experience of influencing senior internal and external stakeholders and coordinating across decentralised structures.

• Significant MSF experience in MSF field operations required.

• Experience with Governance Bodies desired.

Knowledge

• Deep understanding of medical humanitarian action and MSF’s medical-operational environment

• Strong understanding of public health and global health issues relevant to MSF

• Solid knowledge of ethical issues in humanitarian medical practice

• Extensive knowledge of quality of care and patient-centered approaches

• Strong understanding of MSF-wide dynamics, including the interaction between medical, operational, executive, and associative dimensions

Languages

English essential. French desired. Other languages are assets.

Other

Willingness and ability to travel regularly to MSF offices, operational contexts or international meetings.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

At MSF, we are committed to an inclusive culture that encourages and supports the diverse voices of our employees. We welcome applications from individuals of all genders, ages, sexual orientations, nationalities, races, religions, beliefs, ability status, and all other diversity characteristics.

MSF is committed to preventing abuse, inappropriate behaviour, lack of integrity and financial misconduct in its work and care spaces. MSF expects all staff to share this commitment and promote an environment where abuse and misconduct is not tolerated.

We are committed to removing barriers for people with specific accessibility needs. If you need an adjustment to the recruitment process to be considered for the role, please let us know from the beginning of the selection process.

Note: All offers of employment will be subject to reference checks and to appropriate screening checks. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms his/her/their understanding of these recruitment procedures.