Mental Health Supervisor at Medecins Sans Frontieres

Duty Station      -    MSF OCA, (NOMA) - SOKOTO

Main objective and responsibility of the position

Participate in the planning, supervision and coordination of mental health / pycho-social related services in the programme in accordance with MSF standards in order to provide the most appropriate mental health support for patients.

Description of the responsibilities/activities

• Participate in the planning, organization and coordination of Mental Health activities, in close collaboration with the Mental Health activity manager and other medical team members, in order to ensure an efficient and effective implementation of the resources needed while maintaining high levels of quality in Mental Health MSF programs and activities.
• Coordinates activities of counseling services with other relevant actors and liaises with the local counterparts (like MoH, WHO, ICRC and NGO) on mental health matters, including referral services.
• Supervise the daily mental health activities and patient support according to MSF protocols and standards in order to provide the most appropriate support for clients with psycho social needs
• Liaise with the other MSF team members of the project.
• Supervise, in close coordination with the HR department, the associated processes (recruitment, training/induction, evaluation, potential detection, development and communication) of the staff under his/her responsibility in order to ensure both the sizing and the amount of knowledge required
• Oversee the administrative processes associated with psychosocial functioning.
• When needed, give psychological support to patients according to MSF protocols to improve mental health conditions of patients and enhance their functionality.
• Compile the data and statistic linked with MH activities and report to the MH activity manager
• Offer clinical counselling supervision to mental health counsellors in collaboration with the Mental Health Activity Manager.
• Ensure the patient’s related information is kept confidential
• In addition to MSF humanitarian principles, MH Supervisor will be able to define, discuss, and teach key ethical principles related to psychosocial practice in a medical setting (e.g. informed consent, confidentiality, benefit to the patient, nonjudgemental) and develop strategies to exhibit these principles in day-to-day activties.

Assist the psychosocial team to consistently maintain a structured set of activities to enhance recovery at each stage of Noma:  admission, acute/Stage 1 Noma, pre-post op, discharge and follow up.
Demonstrate the ability to model, train, and monitor competencies needed to manage the psychosocial care of NOMA patients to include:

• Complete a psychosocial assessment to identify strengths and needs that will contribute to a patient’s recovery and adjustment.
• Develop a psychosocial treatment plan to address the needs identified in the assessment.
• Develop a plan with each patient for monitoring and managing pain at each stage of Noma recovery.
• Practice basic counseling and communication skills.
• Conduct a counseling session to address the treatment plan and goals of the patient.
• Design and conduct support groups, psychoeducation, and stimulation sessions according to developmental level of patient.
• Engage caregivers of children to enhance positive attachment and effective parenting skills to support good psychosocial outcomes for children living with the consequences of Noma.
• Provide Psychological First Aid to give basic stabilizing support to patients and families who are experiencing a crisis related to medical procedures.

REQUIREMENTS (QUALIFICATIONS):

Education 
Master’s Degree in psychology, counseling, or other social science related to the practice of psycho-social      services.

Valid practicing license from regulatory authorities.

Experience

• Between 2-4 years of psycho-social counselling experience with at least one of those years practicing under the supervision of a certified counselor/psychologist.
• Basic computer knowledge and skills (e.g. Word, Excel, Outlook)
• Demonstrated leadership/management experience.
• Ability to work in a multicultural and multidisciplinary setting.

Languages
English language essential (spoken and written). Any Nigerian local language: Hausa desirable.

Competencies    
 Results, teamwork, flexibility, commitment, service oriented and Stress management.

Applicants should send CVs to nigeria-jobs@oca.msf.org