What is a Mental Health First Aider?

Many of our HR experts recently completed their FAA Mental Health First Aider training. The SCQF level 6 qualification course looks at mental health conditions and gives insight in to the wide range of therapy and support available. When sharing this news to our client, many people have asked what is a mental health first aider?

It’s no secret that the pandemic has had a massive impact on mental health. As we make our way out of the COVID-19 bubble, mental health conditions remain and it’s important employers step up their efforts to tackle this in the workplace. This type of first aider acts as a first point of contact for anyone struggling with conditions such as stress, anxiety or depression. Having someone in your workplace who is trained to support staff when they need it is crucial.

What is a Mental Health First Aider?

A MHFA is a trained individual who is in charge of supporting employees when they are struggling with their mental health. They have been trained to listen, and spot early signs of mental health conditions. As part of their training, they also learn:

• What is first aid for mental health
• Offering advice and support
• How to start a conversation
• Identifying mental health conditions
• Drugs and alcohol
• First Aid for Mental Health action plan
• First Aid for Mental Health in the workplace

Most importantly, they can point staff in the right direction for appropriate support. Mental Health First Aiders are also trained to deal with emergencies such as thoughts of suicide and psychosis. Although a MHFA has the skills to support people in need, it’s important to remember they are not therapists or psychiatrists. However, they can help source this support.

How We Can Help

We are advising a number of businesses on mental health and wellbeing and a recent study showed that absence cost UK employers £14 billion and mental health is now the number one reason for people being absent from work. To continue to give professional advice on this subject, we have invested in this training and all of our team will complete this shortly, which enables us to advise with confidence and ensure we are supporting people and businesses

Already the team have put their learning to good use, advising employers and employees on this very important subject. The team found the course really informative and are glad to learn new skills to help people in need. The majority of the team have now completed the mental health first aider training. We are planning for the rest of the team to complete this as soon as possible.

If you would like to find out more about what is a mental health first aider and how our team can help, contact us now.