Senior MHPSS Officer

Heartland Alliance International’s mission is to secure the rights and well-being of marginalized people and communities. HAI envisions a world in which those whose rights have been violated are safe and empowered to actively engage in their communities and be at the forefront of social change. In Iraq, HAI provides holistic services focusing on psychosocial support, legal aid, violence prevention, livelihoods strengthening, and social cohesion to diverse vulnerable populations. 

Summary 

HAI in partnership with UNHCR is conducting one-year project to support the Refugees and Asylum seekers and IDP/Returnees through Case management – PSS – MHPSS and Access to Justice, community engagement and participation plus protection monitoring and advocacy. The Senior MHPSS Officer will be based in Kirkuk with potential travels to Iraq governorates. The Psychologist will work under the administrative supervision of the Project Manager and the technical supervision of the MHPSS/CM Technical advisor. The Senior MHPSS Officer will play a key role in overseeing the implementation of mental health and psychosocial support services, with a focus on child protection and women at risk. This position involves providing technical and administrative supervision, training, and capacity development for child protection case managers and psychosocial support service providers. The Senior MHPSS Officer will also deliver specialized mental health services, prepare reports, ensure data accuracy in the Activity Info system, and collaborate with various departments and stakeholders to enhance program effectiveness. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities 

Project Technical Implementation Support and Supervisory and Training Responsibility [30%]: 

• S/he will be responsible for ensuring the technical quality of MHPSS / Case management with the guidance of the MHPSS/Case management Technical advisor, / Monitor and document the progress of CP and women activities [Case management / PSS service]. 
• Provide close technical support and clinical supervision (individual and group) to the Child and Women Protection Officer team regularly [Case management / PSS service delivery], through both remote and in-person modalities. Moreover, other community-based agencies regarding Participants and/or Participant care. 
• Assess Child and Women Protection Officer team regularly [Case management / PSS service delivery] capacity, knowledge, and based on results ensure all staff have received key PSS/case management training and receive ongoing supervision & support.  
• Coach, train, and mentor staff to strengthen their technical capacity, exchange knowledge within the CP and women team [Case management / PSS service], and provide professional development guidance. 
• Conduct regular training sessions to enhance the capabilities of the CP and women team [Case management / PSS service] and ensure adherence to best practices in MHPSS and case management. 
• Aid development and provide technical support for the facilitation of peer support groups among target participants and awareness sessions and mental health education and promotion activities. 
• Initiate requests for assistance or guidance from Supervisor/s to address issues affecting adherence to professional standards. 
• In coordination with the MHPSS / Case management Technical advisor Develop guidance, tools, case studies, models, and other materials related to Case management programming for youth and families to promote staff capacity building and service quality. 
• Collaborate closely with the MHPSS / Case management Technical advisor to ensure that MHPSS and Case management components of the program are delivered with a high standard of quality and in line with relevant international best MHPSS practices and principles of trauma-informed care. 

1. Specialized Mental Health Services [30%]: 
   • Deliver specialized mental health services for children and women at risk, ensuring culturally sensitive and trauma-informed approaches. 
   • Perform proper and detailed MHPSS needs assessment of participants and administer treatment programs; interview Participants, and other settings and study medical and social case histories. 
   • Provide focused, direct individual and/or group MH interventions, including to high-risk and high-need participants who have experienced trauma. 
   • Treats psychological disorders to effect improved adjustments utilizing various psychological techniques; selects appropriate treatment approach and plans frequency, intensity, and duration of individual, group, and family therapies. 
   • Provides crisis intervention in situations requiring immediate psychological treatment. 
   • Establish and maintain a confidential, professional therapeutic relationship with participants 
   • Adhere to professional best practice clinical guidelines and procedures developed by the organization. 
   • Actively engage in and prepares for reflective clinical supervision 
   • Serve program participants without regard to ethnicity, gender, religion or income and abide by basic human rights principles while conducting activities associated with this position. 

Project Administrative Implementation Support, Reporting and Data Management [30]: 

• Provide regular planning, support, and day-to-day tasking for the team with the guidance of the project manager/the MHPSS / CM Technical advisor”Technically”. 
• Reporting: Submit regular reports to the project manager/the MHPSS / CM Technical advisor”Technically” about Case management and MHPSS activities and assist in the development of monthly and other periodic reports. 
• Collect and document feedback from the field on the implementation of the methodology, including challenges and lessons learned. Moreover, regularly monitor the needs of targeted populations and ensure the technical appropriateness of the response. Support and coordinate the mapping of resources and referral options useful to respond to needs at different levels. 
• Monitor the quality of services and data accuracy entered into the Activity Info system. 
• Collaborate with the Monitoring and Evaluation Department to facilitate effective data collection and reporting. 

Coordination and Communication [10%]: 

• Facilitate effective communication between various service providers, ensuring a cohesive and integrated approach to MHPSS. 
• Attend relevant meetings and represent the Case management and MHPSS department in discussions with other stakeholders. 
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders, including governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, and community leaders. 
• Collaborate with partners to enhance the overall impact and sustainability of Case management and MHPSS initiatives. 
• Encourage and contribute to a safe and collaborative working environment where self-care as well as care of colleagues is prioritized. 

Visit field: To carry out the tasks and duties of the above position, the position may require 80 % travel to various project locations or travel to the governorates of the Kurdistan Region 

Other duties, as assigned by PM and the Sr. MHPSS Coordinator required by the interest of the project within the framework of the duties of the position. 

Languages  

English Proficiency Level: Advanced 

Arabic Proficiency Level: Advanced 

Kurdish Proficiency Level: Advanced 

• Master’s/BA degree in Psychology, Counseling, or a related field. 
• Minimum of [4 years] of relevant experience in mental health and psychosocial support programs, with a focus on child protection/women Protection and refugee program 
• Proven supervisory skills for mental health, case management, and case management service providers 
• Proven experience in providing specialized mental health services for children and women. 
• Strong training and capacity-building skills. 
• Familiarity with data management systems, especially Activity Info. 
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills. 
• Ability to work collaboratively in a cross-cultural environment. 
• Experience with Windows platform, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc. 

Interpersonal and Technical Skills:  

• Experience providing psychiatric services to survivors of torture and/or war violence strongly preferred.  
• Previous experience with international or local NGOs preferred. 
• Experience working on an interdisciplinary team.  
• Strong interpersonal and intercultural skills. 
• A demonstrated commitment to human rights, high professional ethical standards and humanitarian values. 
• Knowledge and understanding of Monitoring and Evaluation concepts. 
• Ability to reside in Baghdad or Basra and travel within the IKR and Iraq, and the region. 

Physical Demands:  are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear, to sit, use hands to handle or feel and reach with hands and arms and to stand; walk; climb or balance and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl.  
• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 20 pounds.  

Work Environment: are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. 

• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. 
• The employee may be required to travel frequently to insecure and limited-resource environments. 

Sometimes the candidate may be required to work for extra hours to deliver emerging unprecedented priorities 

Please send you CV to:

https://heartlandalliance.bamboohr.com/careers/1037

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. If you do not hear back from us within 2 weeks, please consider your application unsuccessful.

Heartland Alliance makes all hiring and employment decisions without regard to race, creed, color, age, gender, gender identity, marital or parental status, religion, ancestry, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, sexual identity, immigrant status, political affiliation or belief, ex-offender status (depending on the offense and position to be filled), unfavorable military discharge, membership in an organization whose primary purpose is the protection of civil rights or improvement of living conditions and human relations, or HIV infection, in accord with the Organization’s AIDS Policy Statement of September, 1987. Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodation should contact the Human Resources and Administration Office at (312) 660-1431.