PSYCHIATRIST (MALI) At Doctors Without Borders

Your skills and experience don’t exactly match the requirements? MSF-OCBA is an organization committed to promoting diversity and equity by providing equal access to professional opportunities. We understand that women, people of color, Indigenous people, members of the LGTBI+ community and other underrepresented groups are often hesitant to apply for jobs if they do not meet all requirements. At MSF-OCBA, we strive to create a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace. Therefore, if you are interested in this position but your experience does not perfectly match the selection criteria, we encourage you to apply anyway. You might be the ideal candidate for this or other positions.

GENERAL CONTEXT

Médecins Sans Frontières is an independent international medical-humanitarian organization, which provides assistance to populations in distress, victims of natural or man-made disasters and victims of armed conflicts, without discrimination and without distinction of race, religion, belief or political affiliation.

MSF is a civil society initiative that brings together people engaged in assisting other human beings in crisis. As such, MSF is by choice an association. Every person working with MSF does so out of conviction and is ready to defend the values and principles of MSF.

CONTEXT OF THE POSITION

Collaborate with MSF health staff on the integration of psychiatric treatment into basic health care services to ensure the treatment of patients with common and serious psychiatric disorders.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES AND TASKS

• Provide treatment to patients suffering from common and serious psychiatric disorders while paying particular attention to the cultural context.
• Train and supervise national and international medical staff doctors and nurses) for the diagnosis and treatment of common and serious mental health disorders based on MSF guidelines.
• Taking part in the interventions of the mental health team when it intervenes, offers to supervise and provide support to psychologists and national advisors.
• Ensure that psychotropic drug guidelines and treatments listed in MSF’s standard drug list are available.
• Ensure that information necessary for treatment and monitoring is correctly collected for supervision of care delivery.
• Evaluate the psychiatric services available in the country of intervention, including the possibilities for psychiatric hospitalization and the quality of these services.
• Connect with MoH and explore the viability of psychiatric treatment.
• Establish communication/collaboration with other medical specialists involved in the project in order to develop a multidisciplinary approach to care services.

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES Á THE MSF SECTION/CONTEXT

This position of psychiatrist lasts a total of 12 months in order to support the 3 projects (capacities of the staff involved in the activity) for 50% of his time and the rest of the time will be to support the General Directorate of Health in the deployment of MHGap (training and supervision)

The psychiatrist’s mission is to perform the following activities on the mission:

1. Support the PF with the mission’s psychiatric activities.
2. Essentially monitor the progress of personnel trained in MHGap in projects (diagnostic capacity, rational use of psychotropic drugs, use of tools, PEC circuit,…)
3. Strengthen the capacities of psychiatric nurses and other people involved in projects in order to improve the quality of care for people suffering from severe and moderate mental disorders (psychiatric component) within the framework of MSF programs in Mali.

The psychiatrist will have to repeat training per project according to the following validated modules:

• Basic notions of care and clinical practice
  • Depression
  • Suicide
  • Psychosis
  • Agitation
  • Substance use disorders
  • Other pervasive psychological complaints
  • Stress-related conditions

1. Training at the bedside, support for the latter in the diagnosis and orientation of psychiatric care itself and, if necessary, define the reference criteria for the most complicated cases beyond field skills.
2. Provide training and supervision of national medical personnel (doctors and nurses) on the treatment and management of acute mental disorders in accordance with the MSF protocol,
3. Implement an mhGAP supervision plan and ensure regular supervision in line with the mental health strategy of each project.
4. Ensure that appropriate information on treatment and patient monitoring is collected in order to monitor the progress of treatments and provide technical input and recommendations.
5. Support for mental health workers in psychological care with a view to improving all aspects relating to it.
6. Implementation/strengthening management tools for data collection and program patient files.
7. Bring a new perspective on the quality of psychological and psychiatric care for patients through consultations and other visits.
8. Support teams in analyzing data generated by the mental health service and making correct decisions for service improvement.
9. Patient files are correctly completed with all relevant data:
   • The psychiatric database is kept up to date and the Psychiatric Register,
   • Monthly reports are provided to the MHAM for compilation into the monthly report (SITREP)
10. Evaluation of the level of execution of the recommendations left by his Predecessor
11. Supervision of mental health activities in projects and support teams at the CSRef, CSCom level and a look at community activities.
12. Strengthen the reporting of department data and establishment of an adequate system for archiving patient files under cohorts.
13. Strengthening compliance with MSF’s psychiatric care protocol in collaboration with the MoH.
14. Strengthen the collaborative link between MSF and the MoH in terms of monitoring psychiatric patients and clearly define the guidelines for all department staff in terms of reference circuits.
15. Empower psychiatric nurses to work independently and provide adequate, quality care to patients.
16. Strengthen teams in the use of psychotropic drugs in interaction with other products prescribed by other doctors.
17. Actively participate in identifying needs and ordering psychotropic drugs for projects/Missions.
18. Ensure that inclusion and exclusion criteria are respected by teams.
19. Establish a clear system for the conservation and use of these psychotropic drugs.

SELECTION CRITERIA

• Medical degree with registered psychiatry degree.
• Resident in psychiatry with 6 semesters (three years) validated in psychiatry, plus at least two years in adult psychiatry), plus clinical training.
• A valid license/registration to practice in the country of residence.
• Minimum of 2 years of experience as a psychiatrist with adults.
• Minimum 2 years of diverse professional clinical experience in mental health, if possible in multidisciplinary contexts.
• International field experiences with diverse populations and cultures are a plus.
• Experience in clinical supervision and training direction is a plus.
• Fluency in French and English and it is mandatory. Arabic, Spanish or Portuguese are a plus.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• Expected start date: first half of 2026
• Location: Mali, Bamako with travel within the projects
• Type of contract: Fixed-term contract (CDD) – Full time
• Contract duration: 12 months (extendable)
• Salary according to the MSF OCBA field grid, level 9.
• The contractual terms, conditions and salary will be established according to the official residence of the selected candidates and in compliance with MSF’s standard job and salary scales
• No family post
• Adhere to MSF principles and our managerial values: respect, transparency, integrity, responsibility, trust and empowerment
• Adhere to commitments for responsible behavior