Mental Health Specialist

Overview

Position Overview:

The Mental Health Specialist will lead the program's technical approach to strengthening Urban

Health in Afghanistan for the improving capacity to provide sound mental health services and to

inform the program design and implementation in support of Mental Health service capacity

improvement. S/he will work with the technical team, E- mentorship Senior Officer, and the field

implementation team to ensure Mental Health sessions are conducted based on UHI strategy and

plan. S/he will provide direct support to the existing ECHO team for coordination, development,

and presentation of Mental Health ECHO sessions in the UHI Hub and Spoke site. S/he will assist in

the care of patients with mental health problems through the ECHO platform and will provide

technical support to UHI program activities in five cities. This includes working with Project ECHO, a

UHI Consortium partner, to identify, plan, and implement capacity-building support in assuring

Mental health service provision including strengthening and compliance with Standard Treatment

Guidelines. As key personnel on the activity, s/he is accountable for technical activity design and

delivery across the UHI project area in 5 cities of Afghanistan.

• Position reports to Deputy Technical Director
• Location: Kabul
  
  

Responsibilities

Develop a Mental Health ECHO curriculum, implementation plan, and assessment tool for

use by the existing virtual platform

• Coordinate with E- E-mentoring responsible for including the MH portion within the ECHO
  
  

platform

• Deliver MH presentations based on the schedule to selected audiences
• Conduct orientation sessions for MH to ECHO Hub and Spock coordination bodies in five
  
  

cities

• Develop the technical brief of MH ECHO
• Attend MH sessions in Kabul cluster and cities and provide the required support to conduct
  
  

effective MH ECHO sessions

• Technical support to PS counselor in UHI project for better provision of MH/ PSS activities
• Collect data from MH sessions that can be used to develop a plan for the provision of this
  
  

initiative

• Work with PSSCs, G- ANC- G- PNC interventions on MH areas
• Maintain a strong understanding of the best practices for mental health sessions in the UHI
  
  

Project

• Identify and disseminate best practices and new strategies and approaches for MH
  
  

activities

• Provide technical input during the development of work plans and/or long-term strategies
• Participate in internal meetings and share challenges and lessons learned on
  
  

implementation of activities in areas of technical expertise

• Ensure all learning materials, job aids, and quality tools are aligned with up-to-date clinical
  
  

evidence as well as with existing MoPH & international policies and guidelines,

• Comply with UHI project operational, security, and other guidelines and policies
• Coordinate with the knowledge management team to ensure a documentation platform for
  
  

all clinical-related activities

• Collaborate and support to track data and results, document successes and challenges,
  
  

and fulfill reporting requirements

• Any other tasks assigned by the supervisor
  
  

Required Qualifications

Bachelor’s / medical degree in psychology, mental health, or a related field

• Previous experience in a similar role is preferred Excellent understanding of psychology and
  
  

modern therapy techniques

• At least 3-5 years of experience in Mental health program activities
• Ability to work successfully in teams, across a diverse team in a complex environment with
  
  

multiple tasks, short deadlines, and intense pressure to perform

• Strong skills in facilitation, team building and coordination
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills including strong writing, analytical, and
  
  

communication skills in Dari, Pashtu, and English (preferable)

Preferred Qualifications

Bachelor’s / medical degree in psychology, mental health, or a related field

• Previous experience in a similar role is preferred Excellent understanding of psychology and
  
  

modern therapy techniques

• At least 3-5 years of experience in Mental health program activities
• Ability to work successfully in teams, across a diverse team in a complex environment with