First Aid for Mental Health Training Course

Who should attend

Anyone can be affected by a mental health condition either themselves or a family member, friend or colleague.

This course is suitable for everyone but has been designed to help employers to provide a positive mental health culture within the workplace and to provide learners with comprehensive knowledge on a range of the most common mental health conditions and the skills to be able to act should a condition be suspected.

Learners undertaking this course will be considered First Aiders for Mental Health and be a point of contact within the workplace to help and support those with a suspected mental health condition.

Building on the Level 1/4 Award in Awareness of First Aid for Mental Health this course introduces the First Aid for Mental Health Action Plan which allows learners to provide their peers with comprehensive guidance and support for a suspected mental health condition. Learners will be able to provide signposting to professional help and support that person whilst they are receiving professional assistance.

This course also covers the effects of drugs and alcohol and provides learners with the skills and knowledge to assist employers in implementing a positive mental health culture to support employees within a workplace.

Research and statistics

• One in four people in the UK will experience at least one diagnosable mental health issue in any one year (Health & Social Care Information Centre, 2009)
• Suicide is the biggest killer of men aged 20 to 49 (Office for National Statistics, 2015)
• Mental ill health is responsible for the largest burden of ill health in the UK, representing 28% of the total burden, compared to 16% for cancer and 16% for heart disease (Annual Report of the Chief Medical Officer, 2013)

Course information

• What is First Aid for Mental Health?
• Identifying mental health conditions
• Providing advice and starting a conversation
• Drugs and alcohol
• First Aid for Mental Health action plan
• First Aid for Mental Health in the workplace

Assessment

The qualification is assessed through both a practical demonstration of the First Aid for Mental Health Action Plan and a multiple-choice question paper. A Level 2 Award in First Aid for Mental Health will be issued to the learner, subject to successful assessment. No external assessors are required.

Certification

Upon successful completion of the qualification assessment, Learners will be awarded the Ofqual regulated Level 2 Award in First Aid for Mental Health (RQF)/Award in First Aid for Mental Health at SCQF Level 5. This qualification is valid for three years from the date of achievement. It is strongly recommended that the learner attends annual refresher training. The learner will need to complete the full course again to requalify for a further three years.