Public Youth Mental Health First Aid

Description

This online course trains you as a Youth Mental Health First Aider (MHFAider®), giving you:

An in-depth understanding of young people’s mental health and factors that affect wellbeing

Practical skills to spot the triggers and signs of mental health issues

Confidence to reassure and support a young person in distress

Enhanced interpersonal skills such as non-judgemental listening

Knowledge to help a young person recover their health by guiding them to further support – whether that’s through self-help sites, their place of learning, the NHS, or a mix – engaging with parents, carers and external agencies where appropriate

Ability to support a young person with a long term mental health issue or disability to thrive

Tools to look after your own mental wellbeing

Format

This is an online course delivered through the MHFA England Online Learning Hub

Learning takes place through four live training sessions spread across one to two weeks, with self-learning activities in between. See course structure section below for more detail

Each session is built around a Youth Mental Health First Aid action plan

We limit numbers to 16 people per course so that the instructor can keep people safe and supported while they learn

Course StructureSession 1: Introduction

Individual learning (1 hour 15 minutes):

Introduction to the Online Youth Mental Health First Aid course and the Online Learning Hub

Activity 1: Why Youth Mental Health First Aid?

Activity 2: What is ALGEE?

Activity 3: What is mental health?

Activity 4: Mental health and stigma

Activity 5: Mental health quiz: Impact of mental health

Activity 6: Risk and protective factors for mental health

Activity 7: The Stress Container

Live session (2 hours 35 minutes):

Introduction to the course

Outline of live session 1, the value of Youth Mental Health First Aid

Introduce ALGEE

Recap what mental health is

Recap the Mental Health Continuum

Stigma

Recap why Youth Mental Health First Aid is important

Recap risk and protective factors

The Stress Container

The Frame of Reference

Session 2: Depression, Anxiety & Self-Care

Individual learning (1 hour 15 minutes):

Activity 8: Your Stress Container

Activity 9: Your Frame of Reference

Activity 10: What is depression?

Activity 11: What is anxiety?

Live session (2 hours 10 minutes):

Introduction to live session 2

Recap of homework after live session 1

Recap depression

Signs and symptoms of depression in a young person

Recap anxiety

Signs and symptoms of anxiety in a young person

ALGEE for depression and anxiety in a young person

ALGEE for depression and anxiety, action 1

ALGEE for depression and anxiety, action 2-5

Self-care and close

Session 3: Suicide & PsychosisIndividual learning (1 hour 20 minutes)

Activity 12: Adolescent brain development

Activity 13: About suicide

Activity 14: Suicide risk factors

Activity 15: What is psychosis?

Activity 16: Lived experience of psychosis

Activity 17: ALGEE for psychosis

Live session (2 hours 5 minutes)

Introduction to live session 3

Recap suicide

Explore the impact of suicidal feelings

ALGEE for suicidal crisis

Practice non-judgemental listening skills

Recap psychosis

Recap warning signs and symptoms of psychosis

Recap ALGEE for psychosis

Session 4: Self-harm, Recovery & Action PlanningIndividual learning (1 hour 35 minutes)

Activity 18: What is self-harm?

Activity 19: What are eating disorders?

Activity 20: Resilience

Workbook activity 7: My action plan for using Youth Mental Health First Aid (completed after live session)

Live session (2 hours 25 minutes)

Introduction to live session 4

Recap self-harm, the self-harm continuum

Warning signs of self-harm in young people

ALGEE for self-harm

Recap eating disorders

ALGEE for eating disorders

Applying MHFA to family and carers; the Recovery Tree

Evaluation forms and close