Outreach Officer

Role overview

The Outreach Coordinator role within the Pan Human Biobank brings together participant-facing outreach with practical oversight of biological sample handling. It is focused on recruiting participants in a way that is ethical, compliant, and sensitive to culture, while also making sure specimens are received, processed, stored, and tracked accurately according to biobank procedures.

This position works across hospital pre-processing areas, laboratory reception, logistics, quality, and clinical teams to maintain biosafety, data accuracy, and regulatory adherence. The work supports the biobank’s broader objective of advancing high-quality biomedical research.

In some cases, the role may also contribute to specialized biobanking activities such as cord blood or maternal and neonatal collections. The job requires regular full-time attendance during office hours, with the possibility of after-hours shifts, weekend work, on-call support, and travel to recruitment or collection locations when needed.

Responsibilities

• Carry out participant recruitment and engagement in an ethical and culturally respectful manner, including screening for eligibility, obtaining informed consent, and providing ongoing participant support in line with legal and ethical requirements.
• Develop and preserve productive working relationships with participants, healthcare professionals, institutions, and outside partners to strengthen biobank outreach and participation.
• Organize and deliver awareness, education, and outreach initiatives such as information sessions, workshops, community campaigns, and events, and represent the biobank in external forums.
• Keep recruitment, training, and participant information up to date in LIMS and other relevant systems, with careful attention to confidentiality, accuracy, and compliance.
• Assist with training, education, and engagement programs by helping create materials, arranging logistics, managing schedules, and tracking outcomes.
• Accept, check, and record biological samples from collection sites, making sure labeling, paperwork, chain-of-custody, and LIMS entries are correct.
• Carry out pre-analytical and specimen processing tasks according to SOPs, biosafety requirements, and specimen stability needs, including proper cold-chain handling.
• Contribute to quality, inventory, and compliance work, including incident documentation, corrective actions, audits, and observance of ISO and biobank regulatory requirements.

Requirements

• A bachelor’s degree in Life Sciences, Public Health, Nursing, Healthcare Management, or a closely related discipline.
• At least 1 year of relevant experience in community engagement, participant recruitment, clinical research, or biobank/research environments.
• Excellent communication and people skills, with the ability to interact professionally and respectfully with varied communities.
• Clear understanding of confidentiality, data privacy, ethical research conduct, and informed consent procedures.
• Working knowledge of laboratory procedures, biosafety, infection control, and safe biological specimen handling, including PPE use.
• Strong planning, documentation, and record-management abilities, along with the discipline to follow SOPs, manuals, and regulatory guidance.
• Good English proficiency and solid computer literacy, including MS Office and related systems; experience with LIMS or a similar platform is an advantage.
• Extra value will be given to candidates with Arabic language ability, presentation or facilitation experience, lab experience, equipment maintenance exposure, advanced research or ethics training, or DOH/DHA licensure.

Additional information

The role is based in Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi Emirate, United Arab Emirates, and is a full-time onsite position. It may involve regular office-hours attendance as well as occasional after-hours work, weekends, on-call responsibilities, and travel to collection or recruitment sites.

The position supports the Pan Human Biobank mission and may involve work with specialized collection programs where applicable, including cord blood and maternal or neonatal collections.

No stipend or salary amount was specified in the source information.