Competency-based training and supervision: development of the WHO-UNICEF Ensuring Quality in Psychosocial and Mental Health Care (EQUIP) initiative

Abstract

Globally, there has not been a standardised approach to ensure that the growing number of people who are not licensed clinicians but are delivering psychological interventions and mental health services have the competencies to deliver those interventions and services safely. Therefore, WHO and UNICEF developed Ensuring Quality in Psychosocial and Mental Health Care (EQUIP). EQUIP is a free resource with a digital platform that can be used to guide competency assessment. We describe EQUIP's 5-year development (2018-23) and the rationale supporting its contents and use. Development phases included establishing consensus for competency-based strategies; selecting foundational competencies; evaluating feasibility of assessments, role plays, and technology; piloting EQUIP when training non-specialists; and public dissemination and ongoing adaptations to increase scalability. From the public launch in March, 2022, through to March, 2024, EQUIP's digital platform has been used in 794 training programmes in 36 countries with 3760 trainees resulting in 10 001 competency assessments.