Staff Counsellor

The Staff Counsellor will provide psychological and counselling support to IOM personnel involved in the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The role includes conducting psychosocial risk assessments, developing emergency response plans, delivering training, and coordinating with UN and humanitarian partners to support staff wellbeing and mental health.

Responsibilities

• Provide psychological and counselling support to staff members in the Ebola response.
• Conduct psychosocial risk assessments in the workplace, as appropriate, to address highlighted issues.
• Provide recommendations to the CoM and relevant stakeholders on improvements for the effective implementation of the UN Mental Health Strategy and IOM People Strategy in Country Offices in relation to the Ebola emergency response.
• Develop a psychosocial emergency response plan for the mission.
• Participate in and, when required, coordinate Staff Welfare responses to emergencies and critical incidents; liaise with the Head of the Staff Welfare Unit in case of complex emergencies requiring a coordinated response; ensure that Country Office’s security plans include provisions to provide for the psychosocial needs of staff during emergencies and following critical incidents.
• Develop and provide training to all staff on relevant topics including managing stress during Ebola, emotional processing, dealing with critical incidents, wellbeing; provide targeted training to Managers/ Heads of Units to increase their knowledge and skills to create a supportive working environment and increase awareness on mental health issues.
• Provide pre-deployment preparation, support throughout time in mission, and post-deployment check-ins for staff.
• Produce psycho-educational material for dissemination.
• Offer consultations to the Managers/Heads of Units to address specific needs on request and/or to explore avenues for enhancing humanitarian staff wellbeing and mental health in accordance with the UN Mental Health Strategy.
• Collaborate with colleagues in UN/ international non-governmental organization (INGO) staff in relevant units (e.g. UNDSS, Staff Welfare, Human Resources etc.)
• Identify and liaise with local and regional mental health resources that can be used for referrals; refer staff members, who are in crisis, and require emergency psychological and/psychiatric support to appropriate external providers.
• Ensure that reports and other administrative duties are carried out to a professional standard; develop tools for data collection, analysis, monitoring and reporting mechanisms at Country Office level while maintaining records and producing regular reports; keep the Senior Staff Welfare Officer updated on numbers and statistics of services provided in Country Office.
• Participate in Staff Welfare team meetings and activities (monthly group supervision, team coordination meetings, team retreats, etc.) Participate to the relevant UN Working Group and other relevant technical fora, and liaise with UN counterparts on matters related to the staff welfare.
• Ensure the adherence to the professional standards of the United Nations Stress and Staff Counsellors Group (UNSSCG) as well as the Code of Ethics for UN Staff Counsellors.
• Perform such other duties as may be assigned.

Requirements

• Masters degree in Clinical Psychology, Counselling, or Psychiatry or a related field from an accredited academic institution with five years of relevant professional experience; or, University degree in the above fields with seven years of relevant professional experience.
• Must possess an active license or certification, or demonstrate registered membership in legitimate professional organization in the field most relevant to their degree, including psychiatry (medicine or nursing), psychology, counseling, marriage and family therapy, or social work.
• Minimum of four years of relevant counseling experience post licensure/certification/registration, with experience in a similar setting such as an international and/or humanitarian organization is preferred.
• Experience with counselling and psychosocial interventions.
• Experience of working with other UN Agencies, International Humanitarian Organizations, or Employee Assistance Programmes is considered essential.
• Demonstrated familiarity with the impact of working conditions of humanitarian workers on their well-being; Experience in emergency settings.
• Excellent communication and writing skills.
• In depth knowledge of the broad range of migration related subject areas dealt with by the Organization; Familiarity with diversity and its implementation.
• Knowledge of modern technologies, e.g. teleservices.
• Readiness to travel and work in emergency contexts.
• Fluency in French and English is required.

Skills

• Clinical Psychology
• Counselling
• Psychiatry
• Psychosocial Interventions
• Counselling Experience
• Emergency Response
• Psychosocial Risk Management
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Humanitarian Worker Well-being
• International Humanitarian Experience
• Training Delivery
• Coordination with UN Agencies
• Migration Knowledge
• Diversity Implementation
• Teleservices Technology
• Licensed Clinical Practitioner
• Mental Health Support

Languages

French, English