Counsellor Educator at Medecins Sans Frontieres

Main Purpose

• Perform counselling and/or psychoeducation sessions, following appropriate MSF medical and mental health protocols and procedures, in order to improve the psychosocial condition of patients/caregivers.

Job Description

• Identify the psychosocial, socio-economic, and administrative needs of patients/caregivers.
• Actively promote the availability of counseling services and carry out individual or group counseling, as well as basic psycho-educational sessions for patients/caregivers, in order to alleviate their psychosocial difficulties within the project’s scope.
• Report to the line Manager/Supervisor if patients need a referral to other specialists or other institutions for further assistance, when necessary, in order to propose the best support available.
• Participate in the creation of any material needed for counseling activities and keep them in good condition.
• Keep files and statistics of daily activities.
• Participate in team meetings to share experiences and discuss special cases with other counselors, preserving confidentiality.
• Inform line Manager/Supervisor of problems of any kind arising during the day-to-day activities.
• Take active part in trainings, supervision / intervention and support the Activity Manager, when necessary, in 
•  facilitating sensitization for MSF staff or external partners about mental health /psychosocial issues.
• Discuss difficulties in counseling with the line Manager/Supervisor.

Patient care:

• Receive mental health referrals from the medical team and conduct intake and psychological assessments of patients/caregivers referred, following the MSF standards and procedures.
• Identify the emotional and psychosocial needs of patients/caregivers referred and discuss with the MHAM a preliminary treatment plan for their continuum of care.
• Facilitate individual counseling, group counseling or family support sessions for patients/caregivers in the ICU, Isolation wards, orange and yellow zones, as well as for other vulnerable groups within the MSF Maiduguri project’s target population.
• Provide follow-up counseling sessions for all patients/caregivers receiving mental health support using a cognitive-behavioral / play therapy model: paying attention to level of emotional distress, symptomatology, building resilience, increasing coping mechanisms, improving problem management and decision-making skills.
• Liaise with the immediate caregivers of pediatric patients receiving mental health care to provide holistic support to the family unit where necessary.
• Perform Psychological First Aid (PFA) with patients, and when needed their family/caregiver, who are having difficulty making decisions about a medical procedure, or difficulty with a treatment, or difficulty following a patient-care plan.
• Provide pre- and post-test PFA for patients/caregivers referred for HIV testing and refer them to an external medical facility of their choice for follow-up after positive results.
• Perform PFA for SV survivors and collaborate with the medical team to refer them externally for appropriate medical treatment, social support or protection services.
• Plan, facilitate and report on the psychosocial activities and other group interventions with specific target populations in the hospital, for example creative arts therapy for children and recreational therapy for adult caregivers.
• Following a patient-centered approach, ensure that in providing mental health and psychosocial care for patients/caregivers that their rights, needs, and wishes are respected and prioritized.
• Collaborate with the Health Promotion team on community awareness-raising about the mental health signs, symptoms and consequences of communicable pediatric diseases and chronic illnesses such as sickle cell.
• Work in collaboration with the medical team (doctors, nurses, nurse aides) to ensure comprehensive support for patients, emphasizing the mental health consequences of medical interventions.
• Consult with the medical team to be informed about the medical condition and prognosis of patients identified as needing mental health support in order to provide them with effective mental health treatment planning.
• Applying a multidisciplinary approach, participate in end-of-life care interventions and discussions with the medical team and caregivers on the wards, especially in ICU.
• Conduct rounds of the wards daily to retrieve and process all non-urgent mental health referrals.
• Ensure that the wards are equipped with blank referral forms to be completed by the referring medical personel for patients/caregivers needing mental health support.
• Conduct psychoeducation / MH awareness group discussions with patients and caregivers in the hospital, as well as with community members with the community Health Promotion team as needed.
• In collaboration with the MHAM, appropriately discharge patients/caregivers from mental health support who are no longer in need of this service.
• In collaboration with the MHAM, provide patients/caregivers in need of additional or continuous specialized mental health care with referrals to external partners.
• Perform all duties observing the MSF policies and in compliance with relevant SOPs and immediately report to the MHAM whenever compliance cannot be met.
• Exhibit flexibility of duties by performing other patient-related activities temporarily as requested by the project and validated by the MHAM.

Data and Reporting:

• Maintain and ensure strict confidentiality of all patient information by keeping the patients’ files in a locked cabinet.
• Using the standard forms, consistently and accurately update the patients’ files that are kept in the counseling office.
• Consistently and accurately write progress notes in the patients’ medical files on the wards.
• Ensure that the patient register in the counseling room is consistently updated and keep an accurate account of all current patients receiving mental health support.
• On the required form, complete and submit all statistics by the end of each week.
• Enter all statistics and consultation data on a weekly basis in the Mental Health Database (MHDB).
• Liaise with the MH Advisor to correct any technical challenges that arise with the MHDB.
• Participate in the preparation of a report on the MHPSS activities in a monthly SitRep, using the standard indicators.

Supervision / Meetings / Trainings:

• Attend and participate in weekly individual supervision with the MHAM for technical support.
• Attend and participate in weekly inter-project group supervision with the MHAM and other mental health teams in the OCP projects.
• Attend and participate in the monthly MHPSS remote knowledge-sharing meetings facilitated by the MH Advisor.
• Attend other meetings relevant to the mental health activity at the request of the MHAM / Head Nurse.
• Attend and participate in skill-development trainings as recommended by the MHAM / Head Nurse.

Requirements
Education:

• Counseling, Social Work, Psychology, Sociology, Nursing or other similar Degree / Diploma

Experience:

• 2 years experience is essential.
• Experience with NGO is desirable

Languages:

• Fluent English (oral and written English), Hausa, and Kanuri are Essential

Competencies:

• Results and Quality Orientation L1
• Teamwork and Cooperation L1
• Behavioral Flexibility L1
• Commitment to MSF Principles L1
• Result and Quality Orientation L1

Contract:

• 208 working hours per month

Remuneration

• According to MSF salary scale plus 13th month allowance equivalent to 1 month of gross salary.