Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) Support Officer At Americares

About the position:

Americares has been providing emergency funding and technical support to local organizations in Poland and Ukraine supporting children and adults caught in the crisis. The MHPSS Support Officer would assist the MHPSS Officer in the overall MHPSS coordination in the region and for the MHPSS response team. This would include support of the MHPSS team to provide technical support for Polish, Ukrainian and other neighboring country NGOs.

Duties and Responsibilities:

The MHPSS Support Officer will work with the MHPSS Officer to support the overall Ukraine MHPSS response and programmatic work. Specific activities may include but are not limited to:

• Support the technical advising of identified local NGOs (with government stakeholders and response actors as necessary) and work as a team to determine appropriate response objectives in line with the coordinated response objectives and IASC, Americares, and related guidelines and ethics
• Assist the MHPSS Officer in the provision of daily updates to the Team Lead and assist with organizational updates as requested
• Track and organize notes of regular meetings with the MHPSS Regional Team, MHPSS Headquarters Team and other departmental meetings on technical, strategy and programmatic issues
• Support MHPSS Leads to update assessments to support the strategy, program development and coordinated response.
• Work with Monitoring and Evaluation staff and Ukraine and Poland MHPSS Leads to ensure timely evaluation of capacity building efforts including use of quantitative and participatory methods.
• Track attendance at humanitarian and MHPSS working groups and coordinating bodies by MHPSS Ukraine Response staff.
• Assist with capacity building efforts for local NGOs in PFA / PSS, staff care, trauma-informed care and related training
• Support protection mainstreaming efforts with the MHPSS Officer.

Key Requirements and Competencies:

• Advanced degree in psychology or related discipline, with coursework in mental health and psychosocial programming in humanitarian or emergency settings
• Minimum of 3 years’ experience in mental health and psychosocial programming with significant experience in disaster/humanitarian crisis contexts
• Developing track record in supporting the development of strategies, designing programs, conducting training and providing technical assistance in MHPSS
• Experience in humanitarian coordination from an MHPSS background
• Experience with IASC and UN Guidelines, community-based psychosocial support initiatives, and MHPSS capacity building (i.e. Psychological First Aid) preferred
• Fluency in English and Polish required, proficiency in Ukrainian is an advantage
• Willingness to travel and work in remote areas
• Able to work collaboratively across multiple teams and stakeholders
• Able to operate independently and as part of a team

About Americares:

Americares is a health-focused relief and development organization that responds to people affected by poverty or disaster with life-changing health programs, medicine and medical supplies. Each year, Americares reaches more than 90 countries and all 50 U.S. states with over $600 million in innovative health programs and quality medical aid. Americares is the world’s leading non-profit provider of donated medicine and medical supplies.

Americares global health programs seek to confront crisis and create change by creating pathways to health and opportunity. We aspire to support individuals, families and their communities to realize improved health outcomes that lead to years of good health, so they can reach their full potential.

In response to the war in Ukraine, Americares has Emergency Response Teams on the ground in Poland, assessing health needs and coordinating shipments of medicine and supplies for Ukraine. Americares response is focused on delivering medicine and medical supplies, supporting health services, and supporting local organizations who provide mental health and psychosocial support for refugees and survivors who have experienced trauma.

As a global health organization, we are committed to ensuring a safe environment for our staff, partners, and visitors. All Americares staff and visitors who are on-site at any of our locations or will be traveling for work are required to be fully vaccinated (which includes a booster, when eligible) against COVID-19 unless an exemption required by law is applicable.

Americares is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, pregnancy or pregnancy-related condition, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, genetic information, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

To request a disability accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact us at talentcenter@americares.org.