Prevention and Healthcare Policy Officer

The European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients’ Associations (EFA) is looking for a full time (38h/week) Prevention and Healthcare Policy Officer to start as soon as possible.

Are you interested in advancing EU prevention policies and care for people?

EFA is a vibrant federation of European patients’ organisations representing people with allergy, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at European level. EFA is dedicated to making Europe a place where all people living with these diseases can access the best quality of care, live and work in safe environments, lead uncompromised lives, and are actively involved in all decisions affecting their health.

The EFA work pillars are INFORM | PREVENT | CARE.

As EFA Policy Officer you will be working on European policies related to our mission to ensure that the needs of people with allergy, asthma and COPD are at the heart of policy decisions. You will be contributing to EFA advocacy on a broad range of policies such as patient involvement and participation in decision making (INFORM); air quality, climate change, food safety, tobacco control, and chemicals, (PREVENT); and healthcare, digital health, medicines and research (CARE).

You will join a strong policy team of Policy Director, Policy Advisor and Communications and Policy Officer, who works closely with EFA projects and events and membership teams. Depending on the candidate’s profile, you will have the opportunity to lead EFA’s policy on given thematic areas.

Your main tasks will include, but not limited to:

• Monitoring and analysing EU and WHO European Region developments related to the EFA mission and objectives
• Contributing to the development of EFA policy positions and responses to relevant EU legislative procedures, by conducting research, drafting and editing of EFA documents, for example:

• Liaising with EFA Members through our Working Groups, updating them about European-level policy developments, collecting their input, supporting and developing their capacity in EU policy and facilitating the sharing of patient-related information and best practices
• Supporting the dissemination of EFA policy positions among European institutions and stakeholders through a variety of channels, including meetings and social media
• Contributing to the EFA engagement with relevant policymakers and stakeholders with a view to building and maintaining allergy, asthma and COPD patients’ perspective, presence, reputation and partnership with institutions and agencies at the EU and WHO level
• Representing EFA at external policy events and stakeholder forums
• Helping to coordinate of the European Lung Health Group (a group of lung health stakeholders launched in 2020 to advocate at the European level) and the European Parliament Interest Group on Allergy & Asthma channelling allergy, asthma and COPD patient needs through these partnerships
• Assisting in the organisation of related external and internal policy events

• Interest in allergy and respiratory diseases, patient-centred healthcare, health prevention and patient participation in policy-making
• Degree in political science, European law, public health, or a related life sciences field or strong proven track record
• Minimum 2 years professional experience in EU policy and/or advocacy
• Sound knowledge of EU affairs (preferably health, environment, and research policies) as well as of the functioning of EU institutions
• Perfect working proficiency in English
• Savvy in office digital technologies (Microsoft 365 and social media)
• Excellent communications skills, both oral and written
• Very good social and interpersonal skills, a keen sense of responsibility and initiative
• Ability to work autonomously and flexibly within a small international team, and under tight deadlines, ability to plan and prioritise a complex and diverse workload and appetite to lead
• Availability for occasional evening/weekend work, for work-related travels abroad, external/personal health conditions allowing

• Strongly desired previous voluntary or professional experience in a European membership or affiliate-based non-profit organisation and in engaging members, whether individuals or organisations, at the national level
• Experience in campaigning and mobilisation
• Experience in voluntary work
• Fluency in several EFA members’ languages