Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS)

With technical and financial support from the Norwegian Red Cross (NoRC)

TERMS OF REFERENCE (ToR)

Hiring of Consultant Services for a 5-Day Residential mhGAP Training for PFA and Medical Staff with Rollout Support, and Virtual/Remote Post-Training Clinical Supervision

1. About Norwegian Red Cross and Pakistan Red Crescent Society 

The Norwegian Red Cross (NoRC), founded in 1865, is one of the 191 Red Cross and Red Crescent (RCRC) national societies across the globe, strengthening health, protection, and access to clean water for crisis and climate affected people. NoRC started its interventions in Pakistan since 2010 and has been responding to major humanitarian crisis across the country through Pakistan Red Crescent Society’s field formations. Currently, NoRC is operational in eight (08) different locations including Five (05) in the Merged Areas, Two (02) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and One (01) in Balochistan province. 

The Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) is a relief organisation working as an auxiliary to the Government of Pakistan and its Armed Forces, founded on December 20, 1947 by Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Junnah (the first Governor-General of Pakistan) through a Presidential Order, and officially recognised under the Pakistan Red Crescent Society Act No. XV of 1920, as amended up to February 1974. PRCS was recognised by the ICRC on July 21, 1948 and admitted as a member of the IFRC on August 18, 1948.

As outlined in Act XV of 1920, PRCS is mandated to serve as a leading humanitarian organisation in Pakistan, providing assistance, promoting health and welfare, advocating for humanitarian principles, and collaborating with national and international partners to alleviate human suffering and protect human dignity.

2. Programme Background

PRCS provides Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) services during emergency response, disasters, displacement, and conflict-affected situations to address the psychological and psychosocial needs of affected individuals and communities. Key activities include Psychological First Aid (PFA), basic psychosocial support, identification of mental health concerns, safe referral of individuals requiring specialised care, community-based psychosocial activities, and capacity building of staff and volunteers.

As part of strengthening Norwegian Red Cross-supported MHPSS and health services, PRCS will conduct mhGAP Humanitarian Intervention Guide (mhGAP-HIG) training and follow-up supportive supervision for relevant staff and volunteers. The assignment will strengthen capacity to identify, provide basic evidence-informed management, document, safely refer, and follow up selected priority mental, neurological, and substance-use (MNS) conditions in humanitarian and low-resource settings.

3. Purpose and Objectives of the Assignment

Specific objective: design and deliver a competency-based mhGAP-HIG training package for agreed priority modules, with final module selection confirmed during the inception phase based on participant cadres, service needs, and feasibility within the training duration.

The overall goal of this assignment is to provide competency-based training in the identification, basic management, psychosocial support, safe documentation, and referral of selected priority mental, neurological, and substance-use conditions for PRCS doctors, psychologists, and relevant health/MHPSS staff in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Merged Areas, using the WHO mhGAP-HIG approach.

Pharmacological management will be taught and applied only within the legal scope of qualified prescribers, while non-prescribing cadres will focus on assessment, psychoeducation, basic psychosocial interventions, safety planning, referral, and follow-up. The consultant will also provide structured virtual follow-up clinical supervision to support quality service provision immediately after training.

4. Scope of Work: Essential Duties and Responsibilities

The consultant will deliver the tasks below in accordance with PRCS and Norwegian Red Cross approved procedures, WHO mhGAP-HIG guidance, IASC MHPSS Guidelines, Sphere standards, safeguarding/PSEA requirements, and applicable clinical governance and referral protocols in Pakistan.

1. Provide training in the identification, management (pharmacological and psychosocial), and referral for selected priority mental health conditions for primary healthcare providers.

2. Provide post-training supportive supervision and mentoring for two months through remote modality, including individual supervision, group supervision, anonymised case discussions, feedback on supervision forms, and a brief monthly supervision summary.

3. Coach at least one nominated PRCS MHPSS/Health focal person in mhGAP-HIG supportive supervision techniques, use of supervision tools, case discussion facilitation, referral follow-up, confidentiality, and escalation of high-risk cases; document the handover package and competency gaps for continued mentoring.

4. Provide quality assurance support for mental health service provision, including supervision checklist use, chart/documentation audits, patient safety review, confidentiality and informed consent, referral follow-up, suicide/self-harm escalation, adverse-event pathways, and safe data handling.

5. Support PRCS to update or establish district-wise referral pathways with specialised mental health services, emergency care, protection/GBV services, community supports, and feedback mechanisms for KP and Merged Districts.

6. Facilitate multidisciplinary team meetings and anonymised case discussions between specialised and general health/MHPSS staff, ensuring confidentiality, do-no-harm practice, and clear action points for referral, follow-up, and supervision.

7. Coordinate with the PRCS technical focal points including Deputy Director Programs, Deputy Director Health, PRCS MHPSS focal person, and the Norwegian Red Cross technical focal point as applicable, on training plans, materials, clinical forms, M&E tools, supervision templates, referral pathways, and deliverable review.

8. Work within the framework of WHO mhGAP-HIG, IASC Guidelines for MHPSS in Emergency Settings, Sphere standards, Movement/IFRC MHPSS approaches where relevant, PRCS safeguarding and PSEA standards, and applicable Pakistan/KP clinical and referral protocols.

5. Training Content (Aligned to WHO mhGAP-HIG)

The training will draw on the WHO mhGAP Humanitarian Intervention Guide (mhGAP-HIG) and associated WHO training package. The priority modules below are illustrative; final module selection will be confirmed during the inception phase based on participant cadres (prescribing vs. non-prescribing), identified service needs, and feasibility within the 5-day training duration.

6. Training Methodology (WHO Standards)

In line with WHO mhGAP training standards, the consultant is expected to apply the following methodology:

• Use of official WHO mhGAP-HIG clinical content and training package materials (facilitator guides, slide decks, participant workbooks, and official WHO training videos), contextualised to the local language and setting without altering WHO clinical protocols.

• A participatory, adult-learning approach combining short lectures, facilitated discussions, role plays, video-based case demonstrations, small-group work, and clinical/psychosocial case vignettes (illustrations) reflective of the local context.

• Mandatory pre- and post-training knowledge assessments, together with a structured competency observation approach, to measure and document learning gain.

• Daily recap sessions, structured feedback, and a training evaluation at the close of the training.

• Clear differentiation of clinical responsibilities by qualification and legal scope of practice: prescribing cadres (doctors) covering pharmacological and psychosocial management; non-prescribing cadres (psychologists and other MHPSS staff) focusing on assessment, psychoeducation, basic psychosocial interventions, safety planning, referral, and follow-up.

• Adaptation of language, examples, and case scenarios to the local context (KP and the Merged Areas) while maintaining fidelity to WHO clinical content.

7. Target Participants

The training will target PRCS doctors, psychologists, and other relevant health/MHPSS staff engaged in Norwegian Red Cross-supported services in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Merged Areas. Final participant numbers, cadre mix, training venue, and language of delivery will be confirmed by PRCS/NoRC before contract signing.

8. Deliverables

All deliverables should be submitted in editable format and reviewed against agreed quality criteria. Case material must be anonymised, and no personally identifiable patient information should be included in reports, tests, or supervision summaries.

1. Inception note and training methodology, submitted before training, including module selection, the 5-day agenda, adult-learning methods, case scenarios, role plays, pre/post-test tools, the competency observation approach, safeguarding considerations, and the evaluation plan.

2. Detailed work plan and implementation action plan for the contextualised mhGAP-HIG rollout, including the facilitator agenda, participant materials, supervision plan, referral pathway template, M&E forms, quality assurance tools, and responsibilities/timelines for follow-up actions.

3. Two-month supportive supervision package, including monthly review of supervision reports/forms, feedback to PRCS focal persons, at least one group case discussion per month (unless otherwise agreed), follow-up of the training action plan, and a short mentorship summary with recommendations.

4. Comprehensive final report, including introduction, methodology, participant profile and attendance, pre/post-test analysis, competency observations, training challenges and mitigation, facility/service-delivery challenges and proposed solutions, referral pathway status, supervision findings, safeguarding/confidentiality considerations, prioritised recommendations, and an action plan with responsible persons and timelines.

9. Duration, Level of Effort, and Timeframe

The recommended level of effort covers preparation and contextualisation of materials, five full training days, an immediate post-training debrief, finalisation of the training report, and three-month remote supportive supervision. Exact days and payment milestones will be aligned with PRCS/NoRC approved procedures.

10. Consultant Qualifications and Experience

Qualifications

• A psychiatrist or other legally recognised mental health specialist with at least 10 years of relevant clinical experience and documented certification as a WHO mhGAP-HIG trainer/master trainer or an equivalent recognised mhGAP training-of-trainers credential along with a team of 2-3 inclusive facilitators.

Experience

• A minimum of 10 years of clinical experience in hospital and/or community-based mental health, preferably in humanitarian, low-resource, disaster-affected, displacement, or conflict-affected settings, with extensive knowledge of mental, neurological, and substance-use disorders and safe referral pathways.

• Experience in MHPSS programming, including support to refugees, IDPs, returnees, host communities, or other affected populations; broad knowledge of social protection, protection/GBV referral, child safeguarding, and community-based support is an added value.

• Demonstrated experience delivering mhGAP-HIG or mhGAP training to multidisciplinary health and MHPSS staff, including use of participatory adult-learning methods, role plays, case vignettes, pre/post assessments, and competency-based facilitation.

• Experience providing direct and remote clinical supervision, mentoring, anonymised case discussions, chart/documentation review, and feedback to individuals and groups in low-resource or humanitarian settings.

• Experience contextualising WHO mhGAP-HIG training materials, supervision forms, referral tools, pre/post-tests, and participant handouts for local language, culture, service availability, and cadre-specific scope of practice.

• Experience and skills in training medical professionals, psychologists, health staff, volunteers, and non-specialist providers, while clearly differentiating clinical responsibilities by qualification and legal scope of practice.

• Experience developing practical strategies and mechanisms to integrate MHPSS into PRCS or comparable humanitarian health programmes, in keeping with IASC MHPSS Guidelines, Sphere standards, WHO mhGAP-HIG, safeguarding/PSEA, referral, and quality assurance requirements.

• A proven track record in producing easily accessible reports for diverse audiences.

Competencies

• Strong English report-writing skills, with the ability to produce clear technical deliverables for PRCS, Norwegian Red Cross, field teams, and programme management audiences.

• Strong organisational, facilitation, mentoring, and clinical supervisory skills, including the ability to structure remote supervision and document action points.

• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work with and mentor multidisciplinary teams in a respectful, culturally sensitive, gender-sensitive, trauma-informed, and do-no-harm manner.

• Ability to transfer technical knowledge and practical skills through adult-learning methods, simulation, case-based learning, role play, feedback, and post-training mentorship.

• Diplomatic, with the ability to build effective working relationships with PRCS, Norwegian Red Cross, health authorities, specialised mental health services, protection actors, and community support systems.

• Willingness and ability to travel to KP and the Merged Areas, subject to PRCS/NoRC security protocols, access constraints, and duty-of-care arrangements.

Language(s)

• Fluent in verbal and written English and Urdu; Pashto language skills are desirable/preferred for participant engagement and contextual adaptation in KP and the Merged Areas.

11. Reporting Line and Supervision

The consultant will report contractually to the designated PRCS supervisor to be confirmed in the contract, with technical coordination through the Deputy Director Programs, Deputy Director Health, PRCS MHPSS focal person, and the Norwegian Red Cross technical focal point as applicable. Final acceptance authority for deliverables should be clearly identified before contract signing.

12. Payment Terms

Payments will be deliverable-based and subject to PRCS/Norwegian Red Cross approved procedures, tax requirements, and satisfactory certification by the designated contract supervisor. The recommended payment schedule is as follows:

13. Safeguarding, Confidentiality, and Data Protection

The consultant must comply with PRCS safeguarding, PSEA, child protection, confidentiality, informed consent, and data protection requirements. All clinical examples and case discussions must be anonymised and managed through a do-no-harm approach.

14. Intellectual Property and Title Rights

Pakistan Red Crescent Society shall be entitled to all property rights, including but not limited to copyrights and trademarks, for materials directly produced under this consultancy. The consultant shall hand over editable training materials, tests, tools, supervision templates, referral pathway products, and reports to PRCS, and shall maintain confidentiality, anonymise all case information, and comply with data protection and safeguarding requirements.

15. Insurance and Duty of Care

Consultant (and his team) are responsible for arranging, at their own expense unless otherwise specified in the contract, appropriate life, health, travel, and other insurance for the period of service. PRCS should clarify in the final contract any travel facilitation, security briefings, accommodation, field movement support, and duty-of-care arrangements for KP and the Merged Areas if required as part of the assignment.

16. Taxation

Pakistan Red Crescent Society undertakes no liability for taxes, duties, or other statutory contributions payable by the consultant on payments under this contract, except any withholding or reporting obligations required under applicable law(s) and PRCS and NoRC finance procedures.

17. Termination of Contract

Either party may terminate the contract before expiry by giving written notice in accordance with PRCS procurement/legal procedures. PRCS may terminate immediately for misconduct, safeguarding/PSEA breach, confidentiality breach, conflict of interest, fraud, or serious poor performance. In the event of early termination, the consultant shall be compensated on pro rata basis only for accepted deliverables completed to the satisfaction of PRCS/NoRC.

18. Equal Opportunity

Pakistan Red Crescent provides equal consultancy opportunities to qualified applicants without discrimination on the basis of race, colour, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, or other protected status, in line with applicable PRCS policies and law.

19. Application Requirements

Applicants should submit a technical proposal, financial proposal, cover letter, CV(s), evidence of mhGAP-HIG trainer/master trainer certification or equivalent credentials, examples of similar assignments, proposed methodology and work plan, availability, references, and a conflict-of-interest declaration. PRCS should specify the submission deadline, evaluation criteria, and procurement contact in the final ToR.