National Health Policy Expert to develop a high-quality health policy document (strategy & implementation roadmap), Tbilisi, Georgia.

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Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone. 

And we never give up. 

For every child, health

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

To formulate a strategy for Georgia’s Child, Adolescent, and Youth Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) system strengthening, along with an implementation roadmap and costing.

Scope of Work:

Background

Access to mental health (MH) services for adolescents and youth is restricted, primarily available in major cities, and even then, these services are fragmented and poorly coordinated. According to research conducted by UNICEF[1], both students and MH professionals have identified several barriers to accessing these services. These barriers include a lack of information, high costs for specialist visits and medications, mistrust in the expertise and qualifications of specialists, and concerns about confidentiality breaches when receiving services.

The 2018 survey in Georgia revealed a significantly lower number of people utilizing mental health services compared to the number of officially registered cases. Over half of the patients likely avoided referrals due to stigma, poor service quality, and limited geographical and financial accessibility.[2] Experts have identified child and adolescent mental healthcare, housing, and psychosocial care for chronic mental disorder patients as the most challenging and underdeveloped areas. There remains a substantial shortage of qualified psychiatric nurses and social workers. However, the establishment of multidisciplinary operational groups and an active National Institute of Mental Health has provided a solid foundation for future development[3].

In recent years, changing humanitarian contexts have created a more hazardous environment for the well-being and development of children and adolescents. Reflecting global trends, the burden of poor mental health among adolescents and youth has also increased in Georgia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Research on the prevalence of mental health conditions and access to services among 18-24-year-old university students in Georgia[4], revealed high rates of mental health issues: one in four young people experienced moderate to severe anxiety symptoms, one in three showed signs of depression, and one-third have contemplated suicide at least once in their lives.

The same research highlighted a significant lack of knowledge about mental health issues among students. While 97 per cent of surveyed students were familiar with the term “mental health,” only one-third had some information about it. Additionally, over 30 per cent of students reported not sharing their mental health-related feelings and experiences with anyone, indicating a low level of connectedness among youth.

National statistics indicate a rising incidence of mental and behavioral disorders among children under 15 years old in Georgia, with the incidence rate increasing from 82.3 in 2020 to 109.5 in 2021[5].

Considering the significant burden of disease and disability among adolescents due to poor mental health, and its impact on their survival, growth, and development, this area is a priority for UNICEF both globally[6] and in Georgia. UNICEF Georgia is striving to enhance the implementation of mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) commitments across various sectors and to support the initiation of MHPSS reforms for children, adolescents, and youth in Georgia. This effort aims to strengthen their development and maximize their potential.

UNICEF, in agreement and coordination with the Ministry of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Labour, Health and Social Affairs (MoIDPLHSA), is in the process of mapping of MHPSS services country wide with the support of national MH experts. The respective report (due to become available in December 2024) will entail information on available MHPSS services across Georgia, human resources involved (including their licensure requirements for professional work) and policy gaps.

In parallel, UNICEF is engaging international experts to support the development of Georgia’s MHPSS system with clear pathways and referrals. It is anticipated that these experts will bring their knowledge and experience in multi-layered and multi-sectoral approaches, which will contribute to the development of a well-organized and smoothly functioning MHPSS system which promotes a holistic approach to child, adolescent, and youth health, development, and protection.

The efforts above will establish the foundation for developing Georgia’s child, adolescent, and youth MHPSS system strategy, along with the corresponding reform implementation roadmap. The said policy documents (strategy and implementation roadmap) are planned to be developed by the National Health Policy Expert, in close collaboration with in-country MHPSS stakeholders and under the technical oversight of UNICEF mobilized international experts.

With this announcement, UNICEF seeks to commission a National Health Policy Expert to execute the tasks as stipulated in this ToR.

Objective and scope of work

The goal of this consultancy is to create a strategy for strengthening the MHPSS system for children, adolescents and youth and a corresponding roadmap and costing. This task will require active collaboration with national and international experts (mobilized by UNICEF) and high-level decision-makers across various sectors, including health and social services, education, and justice.

The assignment is for 53 days stretched across 12 months and is expecting to meet the following objectives:

• Strengthen understanding of the mental health and wellbeing landscape for children and young people in Georgia, including the upcoming MHPSS service mapping report (available in December 2024), and co-facilitate discussions on a country specific MHPSS system model with the international experts mobilized by UNICEF.
• Formulate a model for Georgia’s MHPSS system and secure the support of decision-makers.
• After reaching a consensus on the MHPSS system model, initiate a thorough consultation process to identify Georgia Governments’ priorities in this field. This process should include discussions on all relevant contextual factors to help outline the framework for policy documents.

Co-facilitate a high-level decision-making meeting with the lead Ministry (MoIDPLHSA) to adopt the

• Create a draft strategy for the child, adolescent, and youth MHPSS system strengthening, detailing an approach to mental health for these age groups over the next five years.
• Present and discuss the draft strategy at a roundtable meeting with adolescents and youth and incorporate their feedback in the 5-year strategy. To further enhance youth engagement, additional platforms such as youth forums and youth councils should be used to collect a wide range of opinions and suggestions.
• Facilitate policy discussions with the involved line ministries and a wider group of stakeholders to achieve consensus on the draft MHPSS system strengthening strategy.
• Convert the agreed-upon strategy into an implementation roadmap, with costing, leveraging collaboration platforms to engage not only national stakeholders but also actively involving the donor community.

MHPSS system reform documents.

Duration: 15 December 2024 to 15 December 2025

[1] https://www.unicef.org/georgia/reports/study-university-students-mental-health-and-their-access-mental-health-services

[2] https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/35A94E06F0ABCD79515AFB3B46FAE9FC/S2056474021000234a.pdf/transitioning-to-community-based-mental-healthcare-reform-experiences-of-five-countries.pdf

[3] https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bjpsych-international/article/transitioning-to-communitybased-mental-healthcare-reform-experiences-of-five-countries/35A94E06F0ABCD79515AFB3B46FAE9FC. Eka Chkonia, Norbert Skokauskas, et.

[4] https://www.unicef.org/georgia/reports/study-university-students-mental-health-and-their-access-mental-health-services

[5] https://ncdc.ge/Api/api/File/GetFile/ea1784b5-d3d0-4dd9-b29f-1369f5d6bbec

[6] https://www.unicef.org/media/82926/file/Adolescent-Mental-Health-Matters-Report-Final-July2020.pdf

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… 

• Master’s degree in health policy, public health, clinical medicine, psychiatry or a related field.
• Strong understanding of public health and systems approaches and their application to mental health.
• At least 7 years of professional experience in health policy and management.
• Demonstrated ability and knowledge to develop strategies, legislation and policy documents in health.
• Experience in providing consultancy services for national and/or local governments in policy and regulation development
• Excellent writing and oral communication skills in Georgian and English, with the ability to facilitate and work in multidisciplinary team, including experts and health authorities.
• Knowledge of UN programming and previous working experience with the UN and/or international agencies is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate… 

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS). 

To view our competency framework, please visit here. 

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic background, and persons with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization. To create a more inclusive workplace, UNICEF offers paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. Click here to learn more about flexible work arrangements, well-being, and benefits.

According to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. In its Disability Inclusion Policy and Strategy 2022-2030, UNICEF has committed to increase the number of employees with disabilities by 2030. At UNICEF, we provide reasonable accommodation for work-related support requirements of candidates and employees with disabilities. Also, UNICEF has launched a Global Accessibility Helpdesk to strengthen physical and digital accessibility. If you are an applicant with a disability who needs digital accessibility support in completing the online application, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility jobs-near-me.org UNICEF.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

Remarks: 

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. 

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws. 

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts. 

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