Mental health and psycho-social support (MHPSS) Program Manager

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IRC - The International Rescue Committee

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Job Description

Background/IRC Summary: The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure. The IRC leads the way from harm to home. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has operated in Libya since 2016, where it works with Libyan national and local health authorities to provide inclusive free-of-charge health services to vulnerable populations. In Ein Zara, IRC provides migrants and refugees with integrated health and protection services. Since 2011 turmoil, Libya has suffered economic collapse, lawlessness, and the proliferation of violent militias. Infrastructure was destroyed and access to basic services, such as health care, has dramatically decreased. In April 2019, another large-scale offense against the Government of National Accord in Tripoli which affected densely populated areas in and around the city for over a year The situation is further compounded by foreign support to militias and mercenaries, and disregard for the UN-agreed arms embargo to the country. More recently, there has been a sense of quiet optimism felt by many as the political situation appears to have shifted and stabilized with the handover of power in February 2021 to the new temporary Government of National Unity. Despite this positive turn of events, the latest crisis gripping Libya is the COVID-19 pandemic, for which case numbers have been steadily increasing since March 2021, even though the COVID-19 vaccine has been rolled out. The IRC Libya program is in the process of expanding the scope and scale of health programming in Tripoli, developing an outcome focused strategy that aims to restore and strengthen the primary health care system, focusing on ensuring survival, equitably, and at scale to reach the largest number of clients.

JOB SUMMARY The Mental health and psycho-social support (MHPSS) Program Manager will be responsible for supporting the integration of mental health into primary health care service delivery in the PHCC’s and urban settlements in line with WHO MHGAP Humanitarian Intervention Guide (mhGAP-HIG) and national guidelines. In addition, the MHPSS Manager will take the lead in the development and implementation of the MHPSS clinical guidelines, Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the integration of MHPSS and Integrated Protection Program. Develop SOP’s for internal and external referral pathways. Furthermore, the MHPSS manager will be directly managing budget and will be responsible for close monitoring of the budget expenditure, monthly review of the budget, and ensure compliance with IRC and donor reporting requirements. The position requires strong emphasis in training and developing the capacity of national staff; the successful candidate should therefore have experience in training, on the job supervision and mentoring, coordination and in building referral links to the other formal service providers. The MHPSS Manager will work and coordinate very closely with; the Health Coordinator, The Deputy Health Coordinator, Integrated protection Coordinator, other project coordinators, Partners and National Mental Health Taskforce team. Under the direct supervision of the Health Coordinator, the MHPSS Manager will also coordinate with the MH Technical Advisor. In addition, s/he will work towards building the capacity of medical staff providing them with supervision on mhGAP and integration of mental health into primary health care. This position will be based in Tripoli, Libya and report to Health Coordinator with close coordination with relevant project coordinators.

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES: Lead the setting up of the mental health PHC integration program in line with the National Mental Health Program plans and strategies that are aligned with the WHO MHGAP HIG and IASC MHPSS guidelines and IRC Outcome and Evidence Framework (OEF) in the supported health facilities and through the community health component. Assess the current MHPSS programming within IRC Libya for protection and GBV, identify gaps, duplications, challenges and best practices Based on the internal assessment findings; in the first month, develop a 6 month feasible work plan clarifying roles and responsibilities of all relevant parties including sector coordinators. Provide clinical mental health and psychosocial program supervision to project staff (re: Psychiatrist, Psychologist, General Practitioners, MHPSS mentors, Protection and GBV case workers) inclusive of ongoing capacity building, professional development, technical support and performance reviews. Conduct field visits to monitor and support MHPSS activities and interventions provided, and support technical quality of programming by providing feedback and mentorship Lead and facilitate monthly team meetings with program staff and share minutes of the meetings with the health coordinator Facilitate trainings and workshops, including organizing logistics, collaborating with co-trainer/s, and documenting program indicators. Assist in developing budgets and proposals. Track budgets, procurement plans, and work plans to ensure proper personnel, facilities, and supplies are available to meet grant deliverables. Conduct mhGAP Operations training for health managers, team leaders and health leadership, develop an mhGAP implementation plan to coordinate the mhGAP activities at all levels. Participate in rapid needs assessments with other IRC sectors and external agencies as required Program Management of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support: Actively participate in coordination mechanisms, represent the IRC in the MHPSS Technical-working group and ensure the implementation of IASC MHPSS guidelines where relevant Coordinate with the National Mental Health Program team to ensure that IRC is aligning their activities with the NMHP strategies and plans Work closely with the donors to ensure proper coordination and timely reporting. Lead the development and implementation of data collection, M&E and quality control measures (e.g. on the job supervision checklists, impact measurement tools, client satisfaction measures and mhGAP training reports) for mental health services, and community-based psycho-social activities

Support the development of referral pathways to strengthen links to available services for MHPSS in an integrated approach. Develop a community MHPSS awareness package in coordination with the health promotion team and protection coordinators Lead the development of appropriate IEC materials on MHPSS, to build awareness of services and promote key messages Support the recruitment of MHHPSS team when relevant Support with team building, performance review and professional development of future staff. Participate in the development/review of mentorship plans and other activity plans on quarterly basis Work closely with the health officers and pharmacy officer to ensure availability of WHO essential psychotropic medications at the clinics at all time Coordinate with other MHPSS stakeholders to ensure complementation.

Partner Management Work closely with project coordinators to identify implementing partners, designing interventions, monitor their implementation and provide supportive supervision.

Ensure the development of regular performance monitoring plan of partners to achieve the set project’s objectives; provide technical support and guidance. Conduct partner’s assessment to understand and plan for the technical capacity building support. Development of capacity building plan for partner organizations along with close monitoring of performance improvement and training uptake. Arrange regular meetings with implementing partners to discuss the future program implementation cycle and understand the challenges and barriers that might delay the progress.

Documentation and Reporting: Ensure disaggregated and cumulative tracking of clients and documentation of all activities and outcomes Participate in preparation of internal and external reports, including submission of weekly reports to coordinators. Take responsibility for collection and reporting of mental health project data including HMIS reporting and patient outcomes (e.g. functioning scale, client satisfaction surveys).Support project staff to maintain program records and documentation as per project management minimum standards, including maintaining the confidentiality and security of MHPSS client data Promote the culture of learning and documentation so that lessons learned, and good practices are documented and shared for institutional memory and learning as well as to advocate on behalf of the targeted communities Support the development of MHPSS monitoring and evaluation tools and related activities for improving performance Working on donors’ reporting and contribute to proposal development Ensure proper documentation of all trainings, completion and analysis of pre and post knowledge tests and on the job supervision checklists as well as mental health PHC integration checklists. Sharing copies with MHPSS team data management, M&E, and reporting. Perform other duties as assigned by the Health Coordinator

Qualifications

QUALIFICATIONS: Medical Doctor specialized Psychiatrist (preferably) or psychologist (with a master’s degree in clinical psychology or counselling psychology) with minimum four years of experience working on MHPSS programs. Sound knowledge and experience on implementing IASC MHPSS guidelines in emergency settings MHGAP training and supervision experience including IG, HIG and operational manual Training experience on Psychological First Aid, Capacity building/ curriculum development experience in community based MHPSS approach Fluency in English. Knowledge of Arabic will be an asset

EXPERIENCE: Previous NGO experience in a conflict-affected setting in MHPSS management capacity Strong experience in MHPSS coordination and project management. Management, training and supervision experience required Strong organizational and supervisory skills and interpersonal skills with the ability to work within different cultural environment Ability to work within a team structure or in isolation, flexible, and can cope with stressful workloads and working with limited resources Experience in mental health and protection work with displaced persons, refugees, returnees and migrants Excellent command of the use of Microsoft Office especially Outlook, Work, Excel and Power Point Good communication, teamwork skills and ability to work independently

____________________________________________________________________________________ The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way - Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.

Added 2 years ago - Updated 11 months ago - Source: rescue.org