Psychological Counselor at International Finance Corporation (IFC)

Description

Project/Task Background / General Description:

The Incumbent will be functional within the Health and Safety Directorate (HSD), Counseling Unit (CU), which assists and advises in identifying staff health issues which are related to the workplace in HQ and Country Office locations for World Bank Group (WBG) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff.  The Counseling Unit also includes and oversees the Bank Group’s Domestic Abuse Prevention Program (DAPP) for victims – staff and spouses – of domestic abuse; and the Family Consultation Services, which provides counseling services for spouses and other family members. The Counseling Unit provides services that promote the psychological health and well-being of employees and contribute to a healthy work environment. The Unit serves clients in Washington, DC, and at Country Offices worldwide. The Counseling Unit is an integral part of HSD, which is the occupational health directorate serving employees and management of the WBG and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). These client institutions are richly diverse environments, with employees from more than 150 countries, working in Washington, DC, and at more than 120 Country Office locations globally. The Counseling Unit is increasingly focused on Country Offices in all regions of the globe, especially given the growing decentralization of WBG operations. The Unit will develop further its involvement with and assistance to Country Office employees and managers.  HSD recognizes that individual health and organizational health are related, and that attention to both supports the effective functioning of employees. Medical ethics and confidentiality are cornerstones of HSD’s work.

The Counseling Unit provides four main services:

• Advisory role to managers, Human Resources (HR), Security & other institutional partners on assisting employees with stress health issues that may affect work functioning; identifying stress risks in the workplace and promoting a psychologically healthy work environment; giving guidance on support to employees during organizational change and in crises.
• Individual counseling: assessment, support & intervention regarding work stress, psychological, substance abuse and family problems; brief counseling; referrals to internal and external resources; provision of resiliency briefings to staff appointed to assignments in countries affected by fragility, conflict, or violence (FCV).
• Training & education of managers, HR staff and work groups on psychosocial health problems, psychological health & disability issues, crisis preparedness and response, workplace stress & well-being
• Crisis consultation and response, after individual or large-scale critical incidents: consultation to managers & HR; crisis intervention & counseling of employees; coordination with internal & external resources, local and international.

Duties and Accountabilities:

• Individual Counseling
  • Independent assessment of mental health and counseling needs of staff with stress-related and psychological problems; brief supportive counseling and crisis intervention; referral to external mental health providers; resiliency briefings; case management.
• Manager and Group Consultation
  • Under the overall supervision & guidance of Unit Head, provides independent consultations to managers on sensitive and delicate issues regarding staff with stress-related problems affecting work; interventions with managers and work groups following critical incidents; work group stress assessments & interventions.  Independently develops and delivers major trainings and workshops to staff at all levels of both the WBG and the IMF.
• Quality Assurance and Program Support
  • Individual clinical supervision with Head of Unit; case conference meetings with the team.
  • Maintain up-to-date, accurate counseling records of client contacts.
  • Conduct quality assurance reviews of programs during implementation and 'after-action' phases
  • Coordinate development and delivery of psychosocial risk assessments and develop office-specific programming based upon the assessed risk factors
• Health Promotion Activities
  • Develop and deliver group presentations on stress-related topics including but not limited to: stress management; work-life balance; organizational change; life transition; relaxation. Coordinate presentations by local subject matter experts. 
  • Ensure fidelity to HSD presentation quality standards and liaise with other HSD entities to promote health activities and programs.  
  • Deliver programs associated with the UN and WBG mental health strategy including but not limited to anti-stigma and mental health literacy activities and campaigns.

As part of HSD’s multidisciplinary and integrated Health and Safety Team in Nairobi, the Counsellor will administratively report to the Senior Medical Officer in Nairobi and technically report to the HSD Counseling Unit Head in Washington. A key requirement of the position will be the ability to summarize data and trends to develop programs and policies that are designed to support staff. Frequent travel is required from the Counsellor to support the regional country offices, at times on short notice based on operational needs, and also at times to remote and difficult locations to provide support to staff.

The Staff Counsellor will be responsible for performing the following duties:

• Provide empirically supported and culturally sensitive counselling services to WBG and IMF staff and if requested their dependents; this may include case management and referrals to other resources as required;
• Provide pre- and post-deployment/assignment briefings to staff who are either relocating to FCV locations or are being deployed to emergency or hardship locations;
• Based on data trends and requests from other divisions/units/offices, develop and provide a range of trainings and programs including but not limited to team building, resilience, and cross-cultural sensitivity to improve morale, health, and team dynamics;
• As part of a multidisciplinary team work closely with individuals and teams to address psychological risks at the individual, unit and organizational level;
• When requested work closely with managers/supervisors towards improving the working atmosphere in their units;
• Provide counseling services to individuals and/or groups during emergencies; provide services in a timely and sensitive manner to staff and dependents after critical incidents, and ensure follow up support for staff and dependents following critical events;
• Provide counseling to individuals who have been subjected to gender-based or domestic violence, and liaise with the WBG Domestic Abuse Prevention Program as necessary to ensure delivery of quality care;
• Identify and liaise with high-quality local and regional mental health resources that can be used for referrals or in times of crisis;
• Coordinate services with UN-“family” counselors, particularly in the context of critical incident response, to deliver care not only to WBG and IMF beneficiaries, but also to other UN beneficiaries as directed by the Head, Counseling Unit.
• In the best interests of staff members and the organization work in a collegial and professional manner with all HSD units to ensure continuity of care;
• Work as a part of a team to insure divisional priorities are implemented consistent with the yearly divisional work plan and the WBG Workplace Mental Health Strategy;
• Develop and participate in multidisciplinary programs in HSD as well as Country Offices;
• Be proactive in building partnerships with but not limited to HR, Internal Justice System, Country Office Staff Association, and Security that support staff within the agency and also with other agencies or relevant organizations;
• Contribute to the development of policies and guidelines, as well as written and visual materials to increase awareness regarding important themes and topics related to staff wellness;
• Complete administrative duties such as maintain statistics on activities and completing reporting requirements as per HSD requirements;
• Participate and collaborate in UN Staff and Stress Counselor Group (UNSSCG), and the UN Critical Incident Stress Management Unit (CISMU) activities and working groups;
• Maintain the highest ethical standards related to the provision of psychological and/or counseling services, including but not limited to confidentiality; practicing within the scope of one’s experience and training; maintaining competencies through ongoing continuing education; and undertaking appropriate clinical supervision;
• Perform other duties as required.

Selection Criteria

• Advanced degree (doctorate or masters) in mental health-related field (Psychology, Marriage & Family Therapy, Counseling, or Clinical Social Work); doctorate preferred.
• Licensed, registered, certified - or eligible for same - as a psychologist, clinical social worker, counselor, or marriage & family therapist.
• Training & skills in brief counseling.
• Demonstrated expertise working with multicultural population.
• International work/living experience preferred.
• Working knowledge of structure of international multilateral organizations preferred.
• Language skills in at least one language (preferably French) in addition to English proficiency preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently.
• Demonstrated excellence in clinical judgment and decision-making.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently.
• Demonstrated excellence in clinical judgment and decision-making.

Experience:

• Eight years of relevant experience post-attainment of applicable advanced university (graduate) degree.
• Additional experience in an occupational setting preferred, consulting on work-related stress.
• Advanced training and/or experience in individual counseling and therapy, in family and/or group therapy, substance abuse, and post-trauma stress.
• Substantial experience counseling & consulting to/with multicultural clients.
• Experience working collaboratively in a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural team environment; ability to manage confidential and sensitive matters with discretion, strong independent judgment, and tact.
• Demonstrated expertise working with multicultural population.
• International work/living experience preferred.