Mental Health First Aid®

Overview

This course, created by Mental Health First Aid England, and delivered by an Accredited MHFA England Instructor Member, in a friendly environment conducive to learning and development. Suitable for those who want to gain the necessary skills to have a non-judgmental conversation, recognise the signs and symptoms of common mental health issues and effectively guide a person towards the right support at the workplace / friends / family. This course takes place over 4 live online sessions.

How will it help you?

As an MHF Aider, you will be able to:

• Recognise those that may be experiencing poor mental health and provide them with first-level support and early intervention
• Encourage a person to identify and access sources of professional help and other supports
• Practise active listening and empathy
• Have a conversation with improved mental health literacy around language and stigma
• Discuss the MHFAider role in depth, including boundaries and confidentiality
• Practise self-care
• Know how to use the MHFAider Support App®
• Know how to access a dedicated text service provided by Shout and ongoing learning opportunities with MHFA England

Format

• Online or face-to-face course structured across four flexible sessions.
• Each session is a maximum of 3hrs 45mins and sessions can be delivered within a two week period.
• Learners will be trained over four live sessions with an MHFA England Instructor Member, covering 14 hours of content in total.
• Learning takes place through a mix of instructor led training, group discussions, individual and group activities.
• Each session builds on the previous, enabling the learner to gain confidence in supporting others with a Mental Health First Aid action plan.
• Limit numbers to 15 people per course so that instructors can keep people safe and supported while they learn and works best for group dynamics.
• We strive for all of our learning content to be as accessible and inclusive as possible.

Content

• Mental Health First Aid and the action plan
• The MHFAider® role and self-care
• Helpful and unhelpful language
• Useful models to support the role
• What influences mental health?
• What is anxiety?
• Crisis first aid
• Active listening and empathy
• What are eating disorders?
• What is self-harm?
• What is substance misuse?
• Applying the Mental Health First Aid action plan
• What is depression?
• What is suicide?
• Crisis first aid continued
• What is psychosis?
• Recovery and lived experience
• Boundaries in the MHFAider® role
• Moving forward in the MHFAider® role
• My MHFA action plan

Whats included?

• A workbook to support their learning throughout the course
• A digital manual to refer to whenever they need it after completing the course
• A wallet-sized reference card with the Mental Health First Aid action plan
• A digital MHFAider certificate
• The opportunity to join the Association of Mental Health First Aiders, England’s first and only membership body for Mental Health First Aiders. Members will receive exclusive access to a wide range of resources, from training and qualifications to events and research.

Also included:

• The MHFAider Support App®. Access to features such as a 24/7 text support service, signposting to a national database of health services, and insights that teach critical self-care skills
• Access to the MHFA England Online Learning Hub. This includes resources such as course manuals and MHFAider® guides
• First-hand insights. Learn from real people sharing their honest and lived experiences of mental health conditions
• Online networking. Invites to exclusive quarterly webinars to help your MHFAiders carry out their role with confidence, skill, and care
• Monthly newsletters. MHFAiders will be kept up to date with all the latest news from our community