Roving Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) Specialist - (Re-advertised)

INTERSOS is an independent humanitarian organization that assists the victims of natural disasters, armed conflicts and exclusion. Its activities are based on the principles of solidarity, justice, human dignity, equality of rights and opportunities, respect for diversity and coexistence, paying special attention to the most vulnerable people.

## **General context of the project**

With over a decade of conflict, there have been devastating humanitarian consequences across North-East (Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe (BAY) states) and the North-West of Nigeria. According to the Humanitarian Needs Overview 2023, an estimated 8.3 million women, men, and children need some form of humanitarian and protection assistance. Over 2 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to persistent violence and remain internally displaced. Food insecurity and malnutrition are exacerbated by inflation, poverty, and restricted access due to insecurity, which impedes livelihood opportunities.

Gender-based violence (GBV) has been a significant protection concern faced by IDP women and girls in the area. Numerous basic infrastructures, such as hospitals, clinics, and water supplies, are damaged, posing constraints on essential service provision. Epidemics like cholera arising from flooding and overcrowded settings put extra stress on the already vulnerable communities.

**RESPONSIBILITIES:**

**Leadership:**

- Develop the MHPSS Response framework and strategy for the mission in line with Mission Protection Strategy, the Global Protection Framework and the Global MHPSS guidelines
- Identify key mental health issues and contributing factors in the communities for both men and women, where we work using assessment tools and research
- Identify Community practices, assets, and structures that are conducive to the promotion of good mental health and ensure that our programming builds on these assets
- Develop Position papers on our MHPSS response outlining our community-based PSS response in alignment with culture and context
- Design Prevention and Mitigation measures for the mental health concerns identified for the children and adults in the community
- Work with INTERSOS Health teams to ensure continuum of care along the MHPSS pyramid
- Work with the CP /GBV Specialist / Protection Coordinator in designing interventions that support PSS that are integrated within our CP /GBV response
- Design Key messages for Awareness on MHPSS based on issues identified in the community and ensure teams are sensitized on it and able to deliver these messages in the community effectively
- Ensure Awareness materials on MHPSS are designed in culturally embedded practices and using traditional practices that the community uses to spread messages
- Ensure the latest developments in the field of MHPSS are shared with the Protection staff and contextualized for their use based on need
- Develop M & E tools for assessing distress among clients and for measuring the impact of our MHPSS services
- Ensure our MHPSS response is community based in line with the global CBP guidelines and MHPSS guidelines
- Regularly prepare and update service mapping in all our project locations to ensure support and follow-up for our clients

**Coordination:**

- Contribute to the design of the protection strategy of the mission and provide technical support and assistance for the implementation of the MHPSS activities through the proper tools and methodologies
- Design and revise MHPSS interventions and activities that are AGD sensitive and ensure AGD and context appropriateness in addressing CP, GBV and other protection issues
- Ensure that vulnerable/at risk individuals are promptly and safely identified and referred
- Draft and revise MHPSS SOPs
- Develop standard MEAL tools and indicators to measure the impact, effectiveness and quality of MHPSS interventions for children, adults and people with disabilities, and ensure the piloting and standardization of these tools. Increase and enhance MHPSS Program monitoring and evaluation, and determining impact
- Perform trends analysis on prevailing protection concerns in each mission location for tailored intervention
- Work with the CP and GBV specialists to strengthen PSS in case management providing guidance on identifying issues, empathy, session structure and referral
- Monitor progress on individual cases documented by the psychologists, maintaining strict protocols for confidentiality and consent
- Collaborate with Case Management and medical teams to ensure proper collaboration in referral procedures
- Lead, mentor, guide and monitor regularly the psychologist teams establishing standard processes and procedures for beneficiaries support and develop standard tools for measuring progress
- Design and develop a MHPSS Toolkit with appropriate resources and guidelines to provide structured and unstructured MHPSS for children and adults
- In coordination with the Protection Coordinator support to contextualize and adap