Acid Survivors Foundation

Request for Proposal for consultant/Consultancy firm to develop a guideline on MINIMUM CARE standard of psychosocial and mental HEALTH CARE for victims of ACID and other burn violence

01. Introduction/Background:

Acid violence is form of gender based violence and is a deliberate use of acid to attack another human being. The victims of acid violence are overwhelmingly women and children, and attackers often target the head and face in order to maim, disfigure and blind. Survivors of acid violence often suffer from psychological breakdown including identity crisis because of their lost and distorted appearance. Furthermore, in a culture based quite largely on the idea of ‘saving face’ where a woman’s value is closely linked with marriage and childbearing it makes it very difficult for unmarried women and girls to come to terms with their disfigurement. For female survivors maintaining a positive body image is challenging when they have to continuously encounter negative reactions to their disfigurement from others; society’s strong reaction can drastically alter a survivor’s self esteem and sense of identity.

Acid Survivors Foundation (ASF) was formed in 1999 with a vision to eliminate acid violence in Bangladesh. ASF applies a bio-psycho-social model to provide comprehensive support to acid and other burn survivors. This model ensures that survivors are able to access medical, legal, rehabilitation and reintegration support as well as well as address the social processes that perpetuate VAWG through ASF’s prevention campaigns  When ASF started its 15 bed operating facility in 2001, ASF learnt that a survivor’s mental health and recovery is strongly dependent on many social factors including their economic vulnerability, insecurity, harrowing wait for justice, and family and society’s reaction and acceptance. ASF recognized that optimally, care should be both medical and psychosocial. However, in Bangladesh the reality is that even if the medical needs are met, there is little or no attention given to the emotional and social needs of the survivor. Therefore, ASF started to focus on the recovery of physical and functional ability as well as recuperation from personal, social and economic loss.

There are no specific guidelines and standards on psychosocial and mental health service provisions for victims of violence against women and girls. There are some service provisions but in terms of accessibly and quality it’s not up to the mark. In 2014 in collaboration with MSPVAW, ‘Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs’ and ‘Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Dhaka’ on ‘Setting Standards for Psychosocial and Mental Health Service Provision for Victims of Acid and Burn Violence’. The prime goal of the conference was to develop a draft guideline for a minimum standard for psychosocial and mental health services for acid and burn survivors in Bangladesh which can be applied in Bangladesh as well as replicated by other developing countries based on their country context.
Prior to the International Conference ASF organized a National Survivors Conference on October 2013 with acid survivors to identify the problems and challenges faced by acid survivors at each stage of their post attack life cycle.  Survivors were divided into three groups; women, men, and children to identify the psychosocial needs and expectations of survivors and their satisfaction with the services they have received from service providers. The findings from the Survivors Conference were presented at the International Conference which was held in February 2014. The conference brought together experts from the field of Clinical Psychology, social welfare professionals, health professionals, International experts working with people living with disfigurements, and representatives from ASF’s partner countries (Pakistan, India, Nepal, Uganda, and Cambodia). The conference produced the following outcomes:

• Provided an overview of psychosocial and mental health care structure and mechanism in Bangladesh
• Share best practices of burn care management in other developed countries

02. Objectives of the assignment:

• To provide an effective guidance in delivery Psychosocial and mental health care support provision in Bangladesh to the acid and other burn survivors. 
• To provide guidance for setting minimum standards for institutional and community based psychosocial and mental health care.
• Establish common principles amongst the key actors of psychosocial and mental health service providers of the acid and other burn victims.
• Improve quality of the institutional and community based psychosocial and mental health support.

03. Terms of Responsibility:

There is no guideline of Minimum care standards for psychosocial and mental health support in Bangladesh for the victims of acid and other burn violence at institutional and community based care. Standards can provide a road map for the service providers of continuous improvement to the support structures and mechanism. As advocacy tools this Minimum care standards can be used and for the common understanding of the key actors it will be guiding document.

04. Description of work:

The specific tasks of the consultant will be to:

• Compile and review all existing mechanisms of psychosocial support and structure of government and non-government organizations which will include the types of services provided and their quality, knowledge, and skills of the service providers, and the tools and materials used.
• Conduct a document review of existing national protocols of minimum standard for psychosocial and mental health support services and protocols of Government and non Government organizations
• Conduct a series of consultations / FGD with relevant stakeholders to define minimum care standards based on South Asia context
• Identify key actions and measurement / indicators and target and guidance note of the Minimum standards  with focusing on the needs of acid and other burn violence
• Arrange a sharing meeting with government, non government service providers and other relevant stakeholders
• Develop a strategy to advocate with government and non government service providers to apply this guideline when providing services to victims of acid and other burn violence

05. Duration  :

The assignment has to be completed in 6 weeks after the signing of the agreement.

06. Key Tasks/ Scope of work:

07. Intellectual Property rights and confidentiality:

 Ownership and copyright of all data, drafts and final products will be the sole and exclusive property of ASF. No information of ASF can be shared with others or used for any other purpose. The agency / consultants expected to keep confidentiality of ASF information.

08. Required Skills and Experience:

The task will be executed by external consultants/ consulting firm with the cooperation of ASF. The consultant/firm which will be chosen to execute task will have the following qualifications and skills:

• Consultancy firm/individual consultant should have clear understanding/conceptual clarity about psychosocial and mental health care issues
• Sensitive towards survivor’s rights issues and relevant international standards, laws etc.
• Knowledge about existing care provision of South Asia Region
• Experience/expertise to prepare different guideline/module/materials in relevant field

09. Cost:

While determining the cost/fee, the consultant should consider the following aspects:

• Involvement of individual consultant’s and other team members  time
• Consultancy fee for other team members  of the firm
• Other cost to complete the task
• Should clearly identify, as a separate amount, the local tax, VAT as applicable. Cost must be expressed in local currency

10. Call for Proposal:

ASF invites proposal to develop a guideline on MINIMUM CARE standard of psychosocial and mental health care for victims of Acid and other burn violence from renowned consulting agency/ individual consultants. Interested institutions/agency/ individuals should clearly indicate their background experience and knowledge of subject area, demonstrate how they meet the required skills and experience, a statement of their availability. In addition, we ask consultants to send:

• Short summary of the proposed process for the task, methodology, Technical proposal, as well as clearly indicating the use of the budget (Financial Proposal).
• CV of consultants.
• Organizational profile (in case of firm).
• Client list.
• Copy of trade license (in case of firm).
• Copy of TIN certificate.
• Copy of National ID card (Owners National ID card in case of firm).

The proposal should be a maximum of 6 pages + CVs and necessary papers. ASF will not fund the preparation, submission or presentation of proposals in response to this RFP. The selection of the Consultancy firm/ individuals will be competitive based on the quality of the proposal, the profile of the proposed team, and cost. ASF does not bind itself to accepting the lowest bid submitted in response to this RFP.

Deadline to submission of proposal till April 25, 2015 within 4.30 pm.

All submissions should be sent with a sealed envelope to the tender box of ASF addressing:

Executive Director
Acid Survivors Foundation
Level 6, CRP-Mirpur
Plot: 5/A, Section-14
Mirpur, Dhaka-1206.
www.acidsurvivors.org