Moldova: Senior advisor in primary health care

Organization: Trimbos Institute
Country: Moldova
Closing date: 13 Oct 2014

Vacancy for Senior Advisor in Primary Health Care (part-time, 50% working time equivalent)for Project Implementation Unit in Chisinau, Moldova for the “Reform of Mental Health Services in Moldova” Project

The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) has contracted the Consortium led by the Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction (Trimbos Institute) to implement the project “Support to the Reform of Mental Health Services in Moldova" (2014-2018). The overall goal of the project is to support the mental health system reform in Moldova with revised legal and regulatory framework and financial mechanisms, built on the model of community-based mental health services that will be developed, tested and implemented in 4 districts. The envisaged impact is the improvement of wellbeing of mental health service users through equitable access to effective mental health services at community level, closer to their homes. The project pursues three primary objectives: provide access to community-based mental health services (primary care, community-based care, acute inpatient mental health services in district hospitals), improve intersectoral cooperation in the implementation of the new model of community-based care, and create an enabling environment for mental health service users to exercise their rights through advocacy and awareness raising activities. The preliminary personnel structure of the PIU will include: 1 local project manager; 3 senior advisors, 1 communications and anti-stigma advisor, 1 chief accountant, 1 administrative assistant, 1 translator/interpreter and 1 driver/logistics assistant.

Job Description:

Under the supervision of the project leader and the consortium team, the incumbent will:

• Serve as a focal point for the integration of mental Health into primary care in the country
• At the national level, the advisor will contribute to the process of revising the mental health legislation and regulatory framework, including clinical guidelines to enable services to function and ensure the integration of mental Health into primary care.
• Provide support as needed to PIU staff and project team for revision of financial mechanisms to ensure sustainable integration of mental Health into primary care
• At the national level, coordinate the process of revision and/or development of pre-service and in-service mental health curricula for family medicine (doctors and nurses) in line with the new model of care proposed by the project
• Coordinate the capacity building process for primary health care professionals to provide evidence-based mental health care in 4 project districts, and nationwide, through training and other related activities.
• Provide support to the development and testing of the quality management system for mental health in primary health care in 4 project districts
• Provide technical input for the communication and anti stigma strategy
• Collaborate with the senior advisor on community mental health with respect to the integration of specialised mental health services in primary care, as well as coordinate with the international focal point on primary care
• Carry out other tasks, as required by Project Leader and Local Project Manager

Requirements:

Education: Medical degree with a specialisation in family medicine. A PhD degree will be considered an asset.

Professional Experience

The incumbent should possess:

• At least six years of professional working experience in primary care;
• Knowledge of evidence based approaches for the recognition and treatment of mental health problems in primary care;
• Previous experience with developing national protocols for health conditions;
• Previous experience with training health professionals;
• A good network of stakeholders in primary care and medicine in Moldova;
• Experience in writing and editing technical documents and proposals;
• Familiarity and experience with results-based management;
• The ability to support the project manager in writing relevant project documents.

Skills and competencies:

The incumbent should be able to:

• Work effectively with experts and key stakeholders
• Ability to work in multidisciplinary and international teams
• Excellent track record in writing technical reports

Language skills

Romanian, English and Russian

How to apply:

Interested candidates should submit their applications in English (Letter of intention, CV, relevant recommendation letters and references) with the subject line “Senior Advisor in Primary Health Care” by Monday, October 13th 2014 to the following e-mail address: ipetrea@trimbos.nl.