What is Mental Health First Aid Training?
Around 1 in 5 Australian adults experience a common mental illness each year. Supporting a family member, friend or colleague who is experiencing mental health problems can feel overwhelming. Starting a conversation, understanding how to talk about mental health and being able to help someone in need are important skills which many people feel unprepared for.
The good news is that mental health first aid is a skill that we can all learn.
Education breeds confidence. Confidence breeds hope. Hope breeds peace.
About The Courses
The Standard Mental Health First Aid is 12 hours duration. It is held over a two day period and is available to people aged 18 and over.
The Youth Mental Health First Aid is 14 hours duration. It is held over a two day period and is also available to people aged 18 and over.
In each course you will learn how to recognise the warning signs of common mental health disorders, as well as practical, evidence-based skills to support the person in need.
The courses include information regarding the initial response, crisis support, and how to help direct the person to appropriate professional support services for ongoing care.
Note that this is an education course designed to teach people the skills to give first aid to others, it is not a therapy or support group.
Mental Health First Aid Australia also provides several specialised courses, such as those for people who identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, gambling, youth and older populations, and suicide.
Hope is a crucial part of mental health first aid, as it helps people with mental illness keep going and seek help.
About Leanne Stokan
Leanne is an energetic, engaging and adaptable teacher, keen to share her mental health first aid knowledge by delivering courses to varied audiences in rural and remote regions of NSW and Queensland. She has over 25 years’ experience as a Midwife and Registered Nurse, as well as being a sexual assault crisis worker. She’s worked in a range of locations from tertiary city hospitals to very remote health settings, in Australia and overseas.
Having lived and worked in the bush for the past 20 years, Leanne understands both the joys and challenges of rural life. With an adventurous spirit and lifestyle, Leanne is comfortable to teach in any setting, be it boardroom, classroom, community hall, local club, shearing shed, campsite, church or ship!
Her varied nursing career has provided her with the opportunity to engage with communities, cultures, families and individuals during times of both celebration and stress. She has an empathetic approach and aims to empower people with the confidence to support one another through their mental health journeys.
Read more about Leanne's work on LinkedIn.
Reviews
The instructor was well educated and very easy to approach and made learning about this difficult subject easier.
The course was extremely well run and delivered in a very professional manner.
Participants were made to feel comfortable with all aspects of the course.
The skills and knowledge I have learnt during the course have become vital in my line of employment.
Leanne was relaxed and easy to talk with putting everyone at ease from the beginning.