Mental Health First Aid
What is Mental Health First Aid?
Mental Health First Aid is a public education program. It teaches participants to recognize the signs and symptoms that suggest a potential mental health or substance use challenge, how to listen non-judgmentally, how to give reassurance to the individual, and how to connect a person to appropriate support and/or services.
Adult
MHFA
(Standard , ages 18+)
This 8 hour course teaches participants how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges among adults.
MHFA focused
on Aging
(ages 18+)
Learn to spot anxiety, depression, and substance abuse in seniors. Using a tailored action plan, identify symptoms and risks, have supportive conversations, and connect older adults to resources that improve mental health and quality of life..
Youth MHFA
(ages 18+)
This course is designed for adults who interact with young people. This includes but is not limited to teachers, school staff, coaches, camp counselors, youth group leaders, and parents. Course participants should be at least 18 years of age.
MHFA focused on Higher Ed
(ages 18+)
Be equipped to address mental health and substance use challenges on campus. Using tailored scenarios, this course teaches early intervention and improves literacy to help faculty and students understand symptoms, decrease stigma, and connect peers with appropriate support.
teen
MHFA
(ages 15 - 18)
teen Mental Health First Aid (tMHFA) teaches high school students (ages 15-18) how to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders among their friends and peers.
MHFA for Fire/EMS
(ages 18+)
This course helps firefighters and EMS identify mental health challenges resulting from traumatic exposures. Using tailored scenarios, learn to spot symptoms, support struggling personnel, emphasize self-care, and connect firefighters with appropriate resources.
Mental Health First Aid is a groundbreaking approach that equips community members to provide immediate aid to someone experiencing a mental health or substance use crisis. It's about transforming empathy into action and extending the reach of first aid to the realm of mental health.
History of Mental Health First Aid
Mental Health First Aid was created in Australia in 2000 by Betty Kitchener, an educator and mental health consumer, and Professor Tony Jorm, a mental health researcher.
In 2008, the National Council for Behavioral Health (now the National Council for Mental Wellbeing), the Maryland Department of Health, and Mental Hygiene, and the Missouri Department of Mental Health brought Mental Health First Aid to the United States. The Youth Mental Health First Aid curriculum was brought to the United States in 2012, followed by the teen Mental Health First Aid program in 2019.
Today millions of people across the United States, known as First Aiders, have been trained in a Mental Health First Aid program.
CBH Care
CBH Care has been involved in the instruction of Mental Health First Aid courses in Bergen County since their introduction to the community in 2014 through the Bergen County Stigma-Free Initiative spearheaded by the Bergen County Division of Mental Health.
In September 2021, CBH Care increased its investment and its infrastructure in providing these courses by adding a Mental Health First Aid training coordinator as well as increasing the amount of staff trained as instructors.