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Self-Care Trailblazer Group

Request for Application

To Provide: Development of how-to toolkit

RFA Release: June 16, 2025

Applications Due: July 4, 2025

Award Winner Announced: July 21, 2025

Project Implementation Begins: August 1, 2025

How to Apply to this RFA:

Applications must be submitted in English and emailed electronically to secretariat@selfcaretrailblazers.org, and cc: crothschild@psi.org

Introduction

SELF-CARE BACKGROUND

The WHO defines self-care as ‘the ability of individuals, families, and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and to cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a healthcare provider. Recent advances in medical and digital technology combined with changing consumer expectations provide an opportunity to refocus attention on this important and evolving approach. Self-care interventions, particularly in the realm of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), have transformative potential to increase individuals’ autonomy in making decisions about their own care, strengthen countries’ health systems, and ultimately pave the way toward universal health coverage (UHC). 

In 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) released the WHO guideline on self-care interventions for health and well-being building on the global guidance published in 2019. This guideline includes people-centered, evidence-based recommendations to support individuals, communities, and countries with quality health services and self-care interventions, as a critical pathway to achieving universal health coverage. 

The WHO released Implementations of self-care interventions for health and well-being in 2023 to build upon the normative recommendations and offer key considerations to support the introduction and scale-up of self-care interventions in countries, at the national or subnational level. This global guidance is intended to assist countries in implementing the recommendations to their local context.

ABOUT THE SELF-CARE TRAILBLAZER GROUP

Established in 2018, with funding from the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) and the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Self-Care Trailblazer Group (SCTG) is a global coalition working to sustain the momentum, following the publication of the WHO Consolidated Guideline on Self-Care Interventions for Health in 2019 (updated in 2022), and further advance the self-care agenda. The SCTG is focused on expanding the safe and effective practice of self-care to ensure individuals can better manage their own health, health outcomes are improved, and health systems are more resilient and better equipped to achieve UHC. By improving the enabling environment for self-care, particularly through policy development, the SCTG aims for self-care to be institutionalized into policy and integrated into national health systems. The SCTG works with global, regional, national, and local partners to achieve this goal and the outcomes contributing to it. Population Services International (PSI) serves as the Secretariat of the SCTG.

The SCTG operates both as a coalition and a set of related programs: 

• The SCTG’s coalition function is responsible for (1) building a coordinated, diverse, and influential self-care movement mobilized around common evidence, goals, and messaging to advance self-care, and (2) increasing awareness and support for quality, evidence-based self-care among self-care influencers, policymakers, and potential opposition. The coalition functions include individual and organizational members, a Coalition Steering Committee (CSC), the Evidence and Learning Working Group (ELWG), the Advocacy and Communications Working Group, and the Self-Care Learning Lab. 
• The SCTG’s programmatic function aims to advance (1) the institutionalization of self-care policies and financing at national and subnational levels and (2) increase the demand and accountability for self-care among target communities and constituencies. The programmatic functions include the National Self-Care Networks (NSNs) led by a local organization, technical assistance support, and a Program Advisory Committee (PAC). 
• The SCTG Secretariat, hosted by PSI, supports the operations of both functions. 

PROGRAMMATIC WORK TO DATE

The SCTG launched its 2021-2025 Strategic Plan which reflects a focus on national and subnational advocacy in early 2021, and selected National Self-Care Network (NSN) leads from 5 focus countries to lead in-country advocacy efforts - Nigeria (White Ribbon Alliance Nigeria (WRA Nigeria)), Senegal (PATH Senegal), Uganda (Center for Health, Human Rights and Development (CEHURD)) in 2021, from Kenya (the Reproductive Health Network Kenya (RHNK)) in 2022, and from Ethiopia (Ethiopia Society for Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ESOG)) in 2023. The National Self-Care Networks (NSNs) are Ministry of Health (MOH) led working groups, which bring together key in-country stakeholders, including civil society organizations working in SRH, health provider associations, academia, country based advocates and implementers, private sector among others, to develop and lead in-country, grassroots self-care advocacy efforts and serve as models for guideline adoption and implementation efforts in subsequent countries. 

All five focus countries, have made significant progress through establishing and convening National Self-Care Networks, that have been instrumental in the development of national self-care guidelines and are at various stages of implementing these guidelines and institutionalizing self-care into their health systems (see SCTG’s learning journey here for more information).  

Scope of Work

GOAL

The World Health Organization (WHO) and SCTG are seeking to develop a Self-Care Implementation Toolkit to facilitate the adoption of the WHO self-care recommendations at the country level. Current normative guidance is high-level, and countries require practical tools for implementation. The development process for this toolkit should be highly consultative, including country-based experts, global topical experts, and WHO regional representatives, and user-driven (i.e., addresses use cases by WHO, national MOH, and development partners).

Through this RFA, PSI seeks to identify a strategic partner to lead the development of  the how-to toolkit that will accelerate implementation of normative self-care guidance from policy to practice.

DESCRIPTION OF CONSULTANCY

To reach this goal, PSI will award a consultant group a 9-month grant with an anticipated budget ceiling of $40,000 USD. PSI reserves the right to modify this budget based on available funding and other considerations, including adaptations of the project scope. 

The selected consultant will serve as the facilitator and drafter of the self-care implementation toolkit working with the SCTG secretariat, the toolkit sub-working group, and the WHO on the creation and dissemination of the toolkit. A highly collaborative process, the selected organization will need to bring together country, regional, and global partners inside and outside the SCTG to facilitate their inputs informing the toolkit.  The process of toolkit development will be broken up into three phases:

1. Setting the stage: Collaboratively define the audiences, use-cases, objectives, and scope, ensuring multiple voices are included in shaping the toolkit parameters
2. Co-creating the content: Co-create toolkit modules based on scope and use-cases defined in the previous phase, bringing in subject matter experts as needed and engaging members throughout
3. Validating the toolkit: Refine the toolkit content to maximize utility for country partners through consultations with target users ​

The consultant will lead the process through these three phases, responsible for ensuring the toolkit development milestones are met in a timely manner. While the consultant is responsible for execution, the work will be guided by an ELWG-led SCTG member Sub-Working Group who will advise the workstream. The consultant will work closely with ELWG and the Implementation Toolkit Sub-Working Group (ITSG) through the life of the process and will be reporting progress to them.

Qualifications and Conditions of Award

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Eligible consultants will demonstrate past successes in developing toolkits, frameworks, guidelines, or policies; experience coordinating and liaising with diverse, global partners (e.g., Ministries of Health, World Health Organization); and substantive subject matter expertise in global health and ideally sexual and reproductive health self-care.

FUNDING

PSI anticipates selecting a consultant with relevant capabilities, past experience, and proposed staffing to execute the development of the implementation toolkit. PSI anticipates a budget of $40,000 USD for nine months but reserves the right to revise this budget ceiling prior to contracting.  

DURATION

This is a short-term investment to maintain momentum to develop the toolkit. The consultancy will be funded for a maximum of nine months, with the possibility of a no-cost extension reserved by PSI based on changes to scope and timing of progress towards deliverables. 

Evaluation Criteria

Organizations wishing to apply are asked to submit Capabilities Statement and Past Performance Review (PPR) that demonstrate:

• Capacity developing, designing, and disseminating toolkits, guidelines, protocols, policies, etc. that address the needs of their target audience (40%)
• Experience in SRHR, ideally self-care (30%)
• Experience conducting similar work listed in the “Roles and Responsibilities” section of the RFA (30%)

The selected consultant will have:

• At least 10 years of relevant toolkit, guideline, protocol, policy, etc. development experience
• Examples of well-designed, user friendly products
• Proven ability to develop connections, build partnerships internally and externally, execute an action plan, achieve results, and evaluate progress.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted in English and emailed electronically to secretariat@selfcaretrailblazers.org, and cc: crothschild@psi.org  A complete application should include the following:

Required:

• Capabilities Statement: 2-page capabilities statement that demonstrates the applicant’s relevant capabilities to deliver the requested program
• Past Performance Review (PPR): up to 6 PPRs (1/2 page each) that provide an overview of the applicant’s performance on a project with similar objectives to this proposed program. The PPRs should emphasize specific results/outcomes achieved.
• CV of designated Consultancy Lead: 2-page CV of proposed Consultancy Lead who will serve as the team lead for all activities under this program.
• Letters of Reference: At least 3 letters of support from key national and regional organizations that demonstrate capacity to advance advocacy outcomes through coordinated action.

Receipt of all applications will be acknowledged. Proposals will undergo a thorough, multi-step, expert review managed by the SCTG Secretariat.

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