Surgical Program Coordinator – Hawassa

About the role

The Surgical Program Coordinator will serve as the primary Operation Smile Ethiopia representative at Hawassa University Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. This full‑time position oversees the planning, implementation, and monitoring of cleft surgery and related education programs, ensuring high‑quality patient care and effective volunteer coordination.

Key responsibilities

• Coordinate all surgical, education, and capacity‑building activities at the hospital and surrounding region.
• Develop work plans, monitor progress, and prepare regular reports for Operation Smile leadership.
• Manage patient identification, recruitment, admission, scheduling, and follow‑up care, including logistics for patients and caregivers.
• Recruit, engage, and retain multidisciplinary medical volunteers, maintaining an up‑to‑date volunteer database.
• Collaborate with hospital leadership to secure qualified surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, dentists, speech therapists, and other specialists.
• Ensure accurate documentation of patient information in both hospital records and Operation Smile systems.

Required profile

• Experience in program coordination within a healthcare or non‑profit setting.
• Strong organizational and communication skills, with the ability to work across multiple teams.
• Familiarity with cleft care pathways and multidisciplinary collaboration.
• Ability to manage logistics for patients, volunteers, and training events.

Required skills

What we offer

• Opportunity to contribute to free, life‑changing surgeries for children with cleft conditions.
• Experience working with an international non‑profit organization.
• Professional development in program management and global health.