Transforming the evidence base supporting mental health first aid training

Project Details

There is good evidence that the Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) program increases knowledge about mental health problems and their treatments, reduces stigmatizing attitudes, and improves confidence and intentions to provide mental health support. Yet only a handful of high-quality studies have examined the impact of the training on the support provided to someone developing a mental health problem or in a crisis. This is a significant gap in the evidence-base supporting the program, as ultimately it is important to understand whether the training improves the quality of support provided and leads to better outcomes in recipients of aid.

This project aims to generate high-quality evidence on the effectiveness of MHFA programs. Program 1 will rigorously evaluate MHFA programs in three populations where there is a critical lack of evidence: middle-income countries, adults of primary school children, and older men. It will also evaluate new courses that have been developed or updated, including MHFA for the Older Person and MHFA for Health Professional Students.

Program 2 aims to advance the measurement of mental health support by:

1. culturally adapting a tool measuring the quality of support provided for adults experiencing a mental health problem or crisis for mainland China, Chile and Argentina;
2. developing a tool to measure the quality of support provided to a child experiencing a mental health problem or crisis;
3. developing a tool measuring the quality of support received for a mental health problem or crisis and investigating the impact of such support on wellbeing; and
4. investigating mental health first aid from the perspective of both the helper and recipient, to deepen our understanding of the impact of support and how to optimise it.

Researchers

Associate Professor Amy Morgan (Project Lead)
ajmorgan@unimelb.edu.au
+61 3 9035 7711

Funding

Mental Health First Aid International