Mental Health Referent specialized in psychiatry M/F – Part-time (0.6 FTE) At Doctors Without Borders

Médecins Sans Frontières, an international humanitarian medical association created in 1971, provides medical assistance to populations whose lives are threatened: mainly in the event of armed conflicts, but also epidemics, pandemics, natural disasters or even exclusion from care. The French section is present in around thirty countries.

As part of temporary reinforcement, we are looking for a Mental Health Referent specialized in psychiatry M/F – Part-time (0.6 FTE)

Assignment :

The mission of the medical department is to ensure the quality of care in projects led by MSF. As a part-time mental health representative specializing in psychiatry (60%), you contribute to better care for populations in precarious situations in the field of patient care, particularly those with severe disorders in mental health, representing approximately 10% of the cohort treated on our grounds.

You are under the hierarchical responsibility of the Medical Directorate and work in close collaboration with mental health referents to provide support in mental health activities in the field and to cell managers and doctors.

You coordinate the network of expatriate psychiatrists, in conjunction with the pool manager.

You participate in the mental health intersections working group, particularly for questions related to the management of severe mental health disorders.

Main responsibilities:

The main activities revolve around the following axes:

• Provide field support in terms of mental health care for projects directly caring for patients with severe psychiatric disorders;
• Supervise and assist the field with the medical order necessary for mental health activities;
• Carry out a psychiatric monitoring activity and update your knowledge of mental health in order to propose strategies, if necessary, that are more adapted to our contexts;
• Contribute to the drafting of guidelines and protocols related to the management of severe mental health disorders;
• Participate and contribute to the objectives and activities of the Chronic Diseases group of the medical department;
• Participate and contribute to cross-functional issues in the medical department and operations: patient-centered care, patient safety, pain management, palliative care, social work approaches, substance use disorders.

Field support for mental health and psychosocial support activities (MSPSS):

• Provides full support to field teams as a mental health care referent specializing in severe disorders;
• Ensures regular contact with field staff responsible for mental health care in order to optimize mental health care and adapt it to the context;
• Exchange with the desks on the technical and operational considerations of missions where there are specialized activities in Mental Health and participate in decision-making;
• Participates in and supervises the collection and analysis of data from psychiatric mental health activity and assists in the interpretation of indicators;
• Provides technical support for individual cases of greater complexity, either through direct contact with the field team or through the telemedicine platform;
• Visits missions, advises and assists volunteers;
• Evaluates needs in terms of training and equipment: redefines the objectives, techniques and tools to be used according to the problems and pathologies present;
• Assesses Operational Research needs and proposes useful research avenues for our contexts;
• Keeps in memory the documents and information available on the program concerned and distributes them if necessary. Ensures the memorization and transmission of MSF experience acquired in each mission;
• Writes the annual report on mental health-psychiatry activities;
• Participates in meetings on mental health (briefings and debriefings, desk meetings, working groups), shares knowledge and experience with everyone;
• Participates in the recruitment of selected volunteers working in his field of specialty, in particular through the technical validation of the profiles of psychiatrist candidates and the pre-departure technical briefing;
• Informs volunteers of the methods and tools used by MSF and trains them in their use;
• Participates in technical capacity building through the dissemination of existing reference documents and recommendations, presentation of MHPSS activity, training, clinical supervision, update workshops;
• Defines a learning and development strategy for missions.

Psychiatric monitoring activity and updating of knowledge in matters of mental health and psychosocial support:

• Keeps himself regularly informed of developments in knowledge and techniques in his field of specialty;
• Documents areas specific to MSF and organizes the conservation of the theoretical and methodological documents collected;
• Ensures regular exchanges with key contacts/experts in these fields (working groups, seminars, conferences, etc.)

Participation in the drafting of documents, guidelines **,** policy papers **, MSF reference catalogs, etc. related to psychiatry:**

• Revises existing articles and updates theoretical and practical information concerning his field;
• Writes new articles or guides;
• Ensures consistency between different documents and practices in the field.

Monitoring of the techniques implemented in the field and the supply of psychotropic medications if necessary:

• Ensures the monitoring and adaptation of the care techniques put in place;
• Updates the content of order lists used by mission pharmacies;
• Responds to requests from the supply department or volunteers on mission relating to medication orders;
• Contributes, at the request of the Medical Department, with its technical expertise to the validation of non-standard articles.

Required profile :

Training / Experiences:

Medical training (doctor of medicine and specialist in psychiatry) required.

Training in psychiatry and/or psychology in humanitarian situations is an asset.

Field experience with MSF or a similar NGO is essential.

Required qualities :

• Adaptability, flexibility.
• Capacity for scientific analysis, proposal of medical-operational strategies and reporting.
• Ability to work in a team, with other specialists, while being autonomous.
• Sense of organization and communication, taking initiative, good argumentation.
• Quality of anticipation and planning.

Languages: fluent English essential (minimum B2 level) and good command of French (minimum B1 level)

Status: 12-month fixed-term contract at 0.6 FTE. Executive position, based in Paris, teleworking possible.

Travel to MSF grounds to be planned.

Terms :

€54.91K gross annual over 13 months on a full-time basis.

Supplementary health care 100% covered by Médecins Sans Frontières. Restaurant vouchers with a face value of €11 (60% covered by Médecins Sans Frontières). 50% coverage of public transport fare.

Position to be filled as soon as possible.