Country: Colombia
Closing date: 20 Aug 2019
Organizational Background:
Heartland Alliance International (HAI) is the global arm of Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights, a family of organizations that has been leading anti-poverty and social justice work in Chicago for 130 years. HAI’s offices in nearly a dozen countries implement programs on a range of global human rights issues, as well as the Chicago-based Marjorie Kovler Center for the Treatment of Survivors of Torture, which serves individuals from more than 50 countries. HAI has significant expertise in the fields of trauma-informed mental health and psychosocial support and access to justice for survivors of rights abuses. It is also an industry leader in access to high quality and stigma-free health care. Across all of its programs, HAI promotes progressive, innovative approaches to human rights protections and gender equality.
In Colombia, HAI provides innovative, collaborative, and community-based mental health services, including individual and group psychosocial support, to underserved populations most affected by armed conflict and violence in the Pacific region of Colombia. HAI’s culturally sensitive and locally adapted programs allow people to heal, become empowered to access justice and social services, and ultimately lead change in their own communities. HAI is presently operating two projects:
- ACOPLE (Alianza con organizaciones por lo emocional): provides mental health and psychosocial support services (MHPSS) and facilitates access to justice for survivors of torture and other forms of organized violence, with a focus on Quibdó and Buenaventura. In addition, ACOPLE seeks to strengthen civil society and institutional capacity regarding MHPSS for victims of conflict and vulnerable populations.
- MAS Colombia (Mejorando el acceso a la salud y fortaleciendo la resiliencia): delivers MHPSS and facilitates access to sexual and reproductive health and other vital services for internally displaced persons and other victims of complex emergencies, while building capacity among government institutions, and enhancing the ability of communities affected by conflict to defend their rights.
Overview
HAI Colombia seeks a clinical director to provide overall direction and leadership for its mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) programs. The position entails responsibility for program planning, implementation, and evaluation and will work in close collaboration with the Country Director, Program Managers, field coordinators, and HAI headquarters technical and proposal development staff. This position will also be responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with stakeholders and donors, and external representation and participate in relevant coordination and working group meetings. The clinical director will ensure that quality services are delivered that meet both ethical and global MHPSS standards and that the programs evolve to meet changing needs and succeed in achieving established strategic goals. Lastly, this position will be responsible for the capacity building of national MHPSS staff through training and supervision. The individual will report to the Country Director and will be based in Cali. The position also involves regular national travel. Individual accountabilities and work volume will be established through the development of annual Success Objectives.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
- Guides the development and implementation of MHPSS programming tailored to the Colombian context.
- Provides technical supervision to MHPSS program managers, field coordinators, HAI psychologists and social workers.
- In collaboration with program managers, ensures that MHPSS program components are implemented according to approved work plan to achieve program deliverables. Through strong planning and monitoring, identifies potential obstacles to programmatic success in a timely fashion, and implements corrective actions as needed.
- Ensures regular clinical supervision to Psychologists providing specialized services in mental health.
- Provides technical oversight and field monitoring of the program staff in close coordination with program managers to ensure high-quality implementation of MHPSS frameworks and tools.
- Provides capacity building training and supervision to HAI’s national MHPSS staff.
- Contributes to capacity building to MHPSS staff of key partners and other stakeholders at the regional and national level.
- Contributes to development and implementation of staff support programming to ensure wellbeing of MHPSS staff and other HAI team members.
- Provides regular comprehensive program updates to Country Director as to program status, current and emerging issues.
- Oversees the recruitment of MHPSS staff as well as ongoing performance management.
- Attends relevant coordination groups and liaises with key stakeholders and donors as necessary.
- Contributes to proposal development and donor reporting for MHPSS programs in Colombia.
- Contributes to scopes of work, project deliverables and monitoring and evaluation indicators and targets together with the relevant HAI HQ staff for grant and service delivery partners as required.
- As needed, contributes to the development of case studies of successes and lessons learned, and other publications to highlight HAI’s specific areas of expertise and value added.
- As possible, represents HAI and its projects in professional and public settings, and makes presentations at professional meetings and conferences.
Qualifications
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or competency required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Education and/or Experience:
Master’s degree or higher in clinical or counseling psychology or related field with a minimum of 5 years of professional experience
At least four years of experience implementing MHPSS programming in development and/or humanitarian settings, preferably in Latin America
Experience/knowledge of mental health considerations and best practices related to the treatment for individuals impacted by displacement, conflict, torture and human rights violations
Knowledge of MHPSS global guidelines and best practices
Experience in program design and development including proposal writing
Demonstrated ability to train staff and implementing partners on MHPSS
Demonstrated ability to provide clinical supervision to mental health professionals
Experience in development of output and outcome level performance measurement indicators and targets related to MHPSS
Experience in MHPSS with children and adolescents preferred
Experience with Protection and Child Protection preferred
Language Skills:
Excellent oral and written English and Spanish language skills required
Demonstrated competency in public speaking preferred
Other Competencies:
Time Management – Ability to prioritize tasks, manage time and complete projects in a fast-paced, changing environment with minimal supervision
Quality Management – Looks for ways to improve and promote quality; Demonstrates accuracy and thoroughness
Analytical – Synthesizes complex or diverse information; Collects and researches data
Written Communication – Writes clearly and informatively; Edits work for spelling and grammar; Varies writing style to meet needs; Presents numerical data effectively
Adaptability – Adapts to changes in the work environment; Manages competing demands; Changes approach or method to best fit the situation; Able to deal with frequent change, delays, or unexpected events
Cultural Sensitivity – Respects cultural environment in which person is working and is sensitive to cultural norms; demonstrated ability to work cross-culturally;
Gender Sensitivity – Behaves sensitively and equitably towards women and men, and is respectful of the diversity of sexual orientation and gender identity of participants, partners, and others.
Computer Skills:
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office, Internet Explorer, Outlook/Exchange, Windows operating systems
Physical Demands: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit; use hands to handle or feel and reach with hands and arms.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; climb or balance and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl.
The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 10 pounds.
Work Environment: The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
The employee may be required to remain on Organization premises during breaks and/or meal periods and may be required to stay on Organization premises until their replacement arrives.
The employee is required to travel regularly to often insecure and limited-resource environments.
Heartland Alliance makes all hiring and employment decisions without regard to race, creed, color, age, gender, gender identity, marital or parental status, religion, ancestry, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, sexual identity, immigrant status, political affiliation or belief, ex-offender status (depending on the offense and position to be filled), unfavorable military discharge, membership in an organization whose primary purpose is the protection of civil rights or improvement of living conditions and human relations, height, weight, or HIV infection, in accord with the Organization's AIDS Policy Statement of September, 1987. Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodation should contact the Employee Services Office at +1 (312) 660-1431.
How to apply: