Psychologist (Staff Health Care Team)
Médecins Sans Frontières
(MSF) is
an international independent medical humanitarian action-driven organization,
which offers assistance to populations in distress, to victims of natural or
man-made disasters and to victims of armed conflict, without discrimination and
irrespective of race, religion, creed or political affiliation. 26
associations, 24 sections, and 16 branch offices make-up the international
movement and work in partnership around 6 operational entities.
MSF EASTERN AFRICA
MSF Eastern Africa (MSF
EA) came into being in 2021, growing out of the Nairobi Branch Office. The
section is the regional institutional office for MSF in Eastern Africa and
focusses on representation and networking, including with humanitarian
organizations and authorities, recruiting and supporting staff from the region,
communications and fundraising, as well as on other dossiers of importance to
MSF such as Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI), mutualization, trainings,
medical operational support and environmental health.
MSF EA has identified key
transversal areas of focus in its two-year strategic plan 2022-2023. This will
enable the Section to grow and provide strategic support to the operations
while building its capacity for future operational ambitions.
The Section provides operational (and administrative) support, interacts with the movement at different levels and is currently hosting teams/desks/units from other offices. This interaction involves different elements including mutualization, coordination and organisation of the activities, structure and resources which need to work within the MSF EA set up.
GENERAL OBJECTIVE AND JOB
ENVIRONMENT
The general objective of
the Psychologist is to contribute to the improvement of the psychosocial health
of the International mobile staff (IMS) from the region and staff in the East
Africa section, guaranteeing mental health support by:
- Coordinating
and providing psycho-social support to all staff.
- Providing
psycho-social support at the beginning and end of a mission for IMS.
- Developing
and implementing strategies and interventions aimed at improving the
mental health of the international mobile staff.
- Developing
policies related to mental health of IMS.
- Coordinating
a network of external professionals who provides support to the
international mobile staff.
Place in the Organization
- Part
of the MSF EA Staff Care Team under the HR department
- Reports
to the Human resource director hierarchically with functional link to
Heads of Staff Health and Psychosocial Care Units in MSF section.
Duties &
Responsibilities
Psychological Support
- Provide
psychological support to international mobile staff, remotely and while at
home.
- Support
punctually in the referrals of HQ personnel presenting mental health
distress.
- Support
punctually with the medical evacuation in cases of acute mental distress,
of IMS from the region.
- Support
staff and their families during medical evacuations upon request.
- Advise
on the management and support of team members in distress.
- Maintain
regular contact with counterparts in other PSU.
- Create
awareness on mental well-being by conducting training and psycho
education.
Coordination and implementation
of psychosocial DBF procedures
- Carry
out Pre-departure briefing.
- Conduct
return talk (personalized debriefing).
- Refer
international mobile staff to an external referral network of
psychologists when needed.
- Identify
a pool of local providers in the Eastern African Region to offer further
external support to the international mobile staff when needed.
- Follow
up in between mission upon request.
Critical Incident support
- Upon
request by OCs support in major critical incidents as family liaison,
calling and supporting other staff in the field etc.
- Provide
support to team members affected by critical incidents upon return home if
needed.
- Reinforce
the critical incident external support team by identifying trained
psychologist able to be part of this roster – with a special focus on
Eastern Africa.
- Upon
request support teams evacuated to NAIROBI in close collaboration with the
relevant team/departments.
- Part
of the Critical Incident management team based on role/need defined.
Building external networks
- Identify
and develop a network of psychologists in different countries in Eastern
Africa to offer further psychosocial support to the IMS.
- Organize
updates and training meetings to the external network in order to ensure
contextualized support is offered to the IMS upon referral.
Training
- Participate
in awareness and preventive programs for the psychosocial support of the
IMS
- Carry
out context-specific briefings for coordinators and other key field
managers.
- Support
the preparation and facilitation of training modules in the Welcome to MSF.
- Participate
in the Field HR days and offer training to the IMS as part of creating
awareness around MH and Prevention.
- Participate
in the regional mental health training conducted in the region.
Other
- Provide
support to Missions in the region on needs basis, including
training/awareness and Supervision for MH workers.
- Participate
in meetings of the Human Resources department, as well as in some other
meetings of the Field HR.
- Participate
in interdisciplinary working groups of the department.
- Participate
in the development of the annual planning of activities and resource
allocation.
- Participate
in the follow up and reporting of activities and budget.
Qualifications
Education and Experience
- Essential
Degree in clinical Psychology, Organization Psychology and other related
field.
- Psychologist
with social and clinical experience with minimum 3yrs experience.
- Knowledge
and experience in emotional support/management of teams under crisis
situations.
- Knowledge
and experience in group management.
- Comprehension
of/and work experience in the international context of MSF.
- Experience
in mental health interventions in conflict situation, violence and
disaster.
- Fluent
in English – Knowledge of French & Swahili valued.
- User-level
IT skills (Microsoft Office applications).
Competencies:
- Commitment
to MSF’s Principles
- Cross-cultural
Awareness
- Behavioral
Flexibility
- Stress
Management
- Analytical
Thinking
- Results
and Quality Orientation
- Service
Orientation
- Planning
and Organizing
- Teamwork
and Cooperation
Others
- Training
skills.
- Availability
to travel and to work flexible working hours.
We Offer
A full-time employment
contract as soon as possible through MSF East Africa Section Office in Nairobi.
An annual salary of KES
2,974,271.
Social benefit package;
allowances ranging between KES 30,000-36,000/month based on individual &
administrative status.
Other benefits include: 25
days of annual leave, Employer Pension contribution and medical insurance cover
(staff and family) based on MSF EA terms/conditions.
How to Apply
If you recognise yourself
in this profile, we welcome you to apply directly via the link provided below
Applicants are required to
upload a letter of motivation + Curriculum Vitae (in
English) in PDF Format as one combined document.
The closing date for applications
is 10th February 2023
Information
At MSF, we are committed
to an inclusive culture that encourages and supports the diverse voices of our
employees. Women and persons with disability are highly encouraged to
apply.
We apologize that due to
the volume of application we receive only shortlisted candidates will be
contacted. Incomplete applications will not be considered.