Psychosocial Counsellor

**Job Advert Summary**:
**Purpose of the position**:
To advocate for rights for people who use drugs, upskill psychosocial service providers on harm reduction and group facilitation. Empowering drug users & community members to offer mutual support. Conducting sensitization trainings for healthcare workers, youth & organisations working with substance abuse users. Provide professional and holistic psychosocial services by assessing the needs of PWID drop-in centre’s clients within key populations programme in TB HIV Care, including implementing interventions and processes to meet these needs.

**Minimum Requirements**:

- Grade 12
- One-year certificate in Counselling from a college or technical school; or three to six months related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience
- Two (2) years’ experience and/or training in working with people who use drugs
- Must be registered with HPCSA/SACSSP (Preferably)
- Valid code 08 driver’s license
- Fluent in English and another South African language

**Duties and Responsibilities**:

- Facilitate harm reduction capacity development, mentorship, and advocacy to psychosocial service providers and PWUD and peer educators.
- Empowers PWUD community members to become community leaders and be capacitated around HIV/SRH information, services and harm reduction practices and facilitation of peer support groups.
- Engages with local, provincial, and national stakeholders linked to HIV, healthcare, gender-based violence and social service policy and service delivery around harm reduction and integration of services for PWUD towards supportive policy reform.
- Organize awareness programmes through community dialogues, healthcare workers and communities.
- Work alongside PWUD community and peer-educators in conducting peer-led groups.
- Performs and coordinates comprehensive psychological assessments and counselling of clients at the drop-in centre (DIC)
- Educates clients on Medically Assisted Treatment (MAT), prepares clients for MAT, and supports clients who are accessing/re-accessing MAT
- Assists with the identification of advocacy issues
- Educates clients and their families around harm reduction, substance use, dependence and treatment and maintenance modalities
- Follows up on referrals from the fieldwork team and management team, with regards to psychosocial needs arising in the course of illness or substance use disorders to carry out interventions and provide feedback
- Reports monthly to line manager on all work related activities