BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 crisis has had a major impact on the mental health of individuals and communities.  The mental health and wellbeing of whole societies have been severely impacted by this crisis and are a priority to be addressed urgently.  Supporting the mental health and psychosocial needs of the population would enable people to cope with their reactions and feelings amid the pandemic. 

Suicide is a complex phenomenon. Globally, it is estimated that over 800 000 people die by suicide each year, with many more attempts for each death that occurs. Importantly, suicides are preventable.

The National Center for Mental Health Crisis Hotline statistics has received calls from an average of 13-15 daily and 400 monthly calls from May 2019 to February 2020 to 30-35 daily and 953 monthly calls from March to May 2020.  Notably, the number of calls received increased more than twice during the pandemic. As of 24 August 2020, there have been 5,504 total NCMH Crisis Hotline calls (since March 2020), 455 of which were suicide related.

From January 1 to March 15, 2021, the hotline received an average of 1,002 calls per month, while suicide-related calls averaged 289 a month. On 16 March 2021, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that deaths due to intentional self-harm recorded a 25.7 percent increase from the previous year, making it the 27th leading cause of death in 2020, from rank 31 in 2019.  From the 2,808 registered deaths due to intentional self-harm in 2019, this spiked to 3,529 in 2020.

The factors contributing to suicide and its prevention are complex, but there is increasing evidence that the media can play a significant role in either enhancing or reducing suicide prevention efforts.  The media may provide useful educational information about suicide or may spread misinformation about it. LIVE LIFE is the WHO approach to reduce suicide, and one of the four key evidence-based suicide prevention strategies is Interaction with media for responsible reporting.  The reduction of suicide mortality has been prioritized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a global target and included as an indicator in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) under target 3.4 and the WHO Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2030.

The Philippine Council for Mental Health has likewise developed a strategic plan in 2019 and, in this, the Department of Health has been tasked with “convening film makers, media outlets, KBP, MTRCB, PIA, and PCMH to develop guidelines for ethical reporting of MH in the news, responsible and accurate content, and provision of trigger warnings.”  With this, the Department of Health has requested the WHO Philippines to support the development of national guidelines for the ethical and responsible reporting and portrayal of suicide through contextualising and operationalising the WHO’s guidelines.

PURPOSE/SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE OF THE ACTIVITY

The purpose of the agreement is for a contractual partner institution/organization to support the Development of National Guidelines on Ethical and Responsible Reporting of Suicide in Media.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES TO BE CARRIED OUT

Output 1: Inception Report with itemized work plan and Gantt chart of activities.

Deliverable 1.1: Develop work plan with Gantt chart of activities.  The work plan will be part of the inception report that will be submitted to WHO Philippines at the beginning of the engagement.  The inception report, to be submitted within 7 days of commencing this assignment, will demonstrate the consultant’s conceptual and implementation approach and methodology, scope of work, resources required for capacity building activities, materials for breakout sessions and the timeline of activities to guide the assignment and meet the agreed upon deliverables.

Deliverable 1.2: Discuss the inception report and work plan with DOH HPB and WHO Philippines.

Output 2: Pre-Workshop Orientation Report.

Deliverable 2.1: Documentation (e.g. proceedings, minutes, photos, videos, recordings, etc.).

Deliverable 2.2: Evaluation of Orientation.

Output 3. Plan, Design and Deliver the Online/Virtual Workshop Development of National Guidelines on Ethical and Responsible Reporting and Portrayal of Suicide in Media.

Deliverable 3.1: Submit the workshop materials (including but not limited to agenda and program, relevant training materials and handouts).

Deliverable 3.2: Conduct/Deliver the Online/Virtual Workshop Development of National Guidelines on Ethical and Responsible Reporting and Portrayal of Suicide
in Media.

Deliverable 3.3: Submit workshop documentation (i.e. photos, video, recordings, workshop evaluation forms, etc).

Deliverable 3.4: Submit Draft Guidelines on Ethical and Responsible Reporting and Portrayal of Suicide in Media as co-developed with DOH HPB.

Output 4: Plan, Design and Deliver the Online/Virtual Training for Stakeholders.

Deliverable 4.1: Submit Capacity building/training materials/online module (including but not limited to agenda and program, relevant training materials and handouts).

Deliverable 4.2: Conduct/Deliver capacity building activities/training online/virtually.

Deliverable 4.3: Submit training documentation including feedback and support provided to the technical group and participants (i.e. photos, video, recordings, workshop evaluation forms, etc).

Output 5: Technical Final Narrative and Financial Report.

Deliverable 5.1: Submit a Technical Narrative Report which includes possible recommendations, evaluation of the workshop and capacity building with supporting documentation.

Deliverable 5.2: Submit final financial report.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

The individual contractual partner or institution's members must fulfil the following qualifications:

EDUCATION

• • Essential: The team leader must have a post-graduate degree/certificate or advanced studies in public health, social sciences, public health administration, mental health, or similar from a recognized institution.
• • A member of the team should have a degree in mass communications, communications, journalism, or other related fields.

EXPERIENCE

• • At least five years of relevant work experience in designing and facilitating workshops with policy output.
• • Relevant experience in working with media practitioners, in mental health promotion, program planning, operations and implementation; familiar with the DOH policy development and components.
• • Experience with the UN system or other international organizations is an advantage.

TECHNICAL SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE

With good technical writing and facilitation skills, knowledgeable in basic computer programs/online platforms, efficient organizational and management skills.

LANGUAGES

Good English communication (writing and speaking) skills.

COMPETENCIES

• • Communicating in a credible, effective and culturally competent way.
• • Moving forward in a changing environment.
• • Fostering integration and teamwork.
• • Producing results.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The contractual partner must have no direct or indirect interest in the tobacco industry, alcohol industry, arms dealing or human trafficking.

Contract time

The work to be done under this contract shall be the Development of National Guidelines on Ethical and Responsible Reporting of Suicide in Media as set out in the Terms of Reference.  The contract will be completed in not more than 3 months from the commencement of the Work, as agreed in writing among the Owner and the Contractor.  The work shall be done in strict compliance with the Contract, Specifications, Schedules, and all other Contract documents and all Instructions. Failure to do so shall be at the Contractor’s risk and account. Submission of Bid by the Contractor shall constitute acknowledgement by the Contractor that it is aware of and concurs with all of the requirements or conditions incorporated in the Call for Proposal and the other documents.

As time is an essential element of this Contract, for failure to complete all work within the stipulated as set out in the Terms of Reference, the Owner shall charge the Contractor liquidated damages. This shall be in the amount the sum of 0.5% of the total contract amount per day (Saturdays, Sundays and holidays are included) but not to exceed on total 10% (ten percent) of the contract amount. These liquidated damages shall be for the added cost incurred by the Owner for such delay and also for the inconvenience caused to the users of the Work. It is understood that this is not a penalty but a fixed sum representing the liquidated damages for each calendar day of the delay. Delay shall be counted from the agreed completion date, considering further time extensions approved by the Owner, to the date of completion of work.

Confidentiality

The results, products and reports of this APW are to be treated as confidential and must not be handed over to third parties. The DOH and WHO have the exclusive ownership of the reports and reserve the right to further disseminate relevant information.

The contractual partner will also provide disclaimer on the reports: This document has been produced with the assistance of the World Health Organization. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the author, and does not necessarily reflect the opinions, recommendations, or advice of the World Health Organization.

APPLICATIONS

Qualified and interested institutions and/or specialists should submit their Expression of Interest, Proposal with financial details and proposed timeline and company profile and qualifications of team member (if institution) or curriculum vitae (if individual) to Mrs. Ying Chen ([email protected]) through WP RO UNGM at [email protected] by 15 June 2021.

The cover letter should outline how their experience and qualifications make them a suitable candidate for this position and should include their proposed daily consultancy fee and availability. 

Please use Tender Notice No. 130062 as subject to all submission. Only successful candidates will be contacted.