Mental health first aid training for the Chinese community in Melbourne,Australia: effects on knowledge about and attitudes toward people with mental illness

Background  

The aim of this study was to investigate in members of the Chinese community in Melbourne the impact of Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training on knowledge about mental disorders and on attitudes to people with mental illness. The hypotheses were that at the end of the training participants would have increased knowledge of mental disorders and related treatments, and decreased negative attitudes towards people with mental disorders.     

Mental Health First Aid guidelines for helping a suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in the Philippines

Background  

This study aimed to develop guidelines for how a member of the Filipino public should provide mental health first aid to a person who is suicidal.     

Characteristics of Vietnamese patients attending an anxiety clinic in Australia and perceptions of the wider Vietnamese community about anxiety

This article examined the causes underlying low utilization of mental health services by Vietnamese immigrants in Australia. Study 1 examined cases of Vietnamese patients who had attended an anxiety disorders clinic, while Study 2 surveyed Vietnamese people in the community on their knowledge and attitudes towards common mental problems. Results from Study 1 showed that Vietnamese patients had significantly higher attrition rates, and presented with a larger number of nonanxiety disorders than their Australian-born counterparts. Study 2 results indicated that many Vietnamese people did not differentiate clearly between the terms 'stress', 'anxiety' and 'depression'. Additionally, many participants felt that there was a generally negative cultural attitude towards people suffering from these problems and the mental health system itself. These outcomes suggest the importance of education for ethnic communities regarding available mental health facilities and treatments offered, as well as specific information on mental illness to help remove stigma.     

Mental Health First Aid guidelines for helping a suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in Japan

Background  

This study aimed to develop guidelines for how a member of the Japanese public should provide mental health first aid to a person who is suicidal.     

Mental Health First Aid guidelines for helping a suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in India

Background  

This study aimed to develop guidelines for how a member of the Indian public should provide mental health first aid to a person who is suicidal.     

Mental Health First Aid is an effective public health intervention for improving knowledge,attitudes, and behaviour: A meta-analysis

Abstract

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is a standardized, psychoeducational programme developed to empower the public to approach, support and refer individuals in distress by improving course participants’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviours related to mental ill-health. The present paper aims to synthesize published evaluations of the MHFA programme in a meta-analysis to estimate its effects and potential as a public mental health awareness-increasing strategy. Fifteen relevant papers were identified through a systematic literature search. Standardized effect sizes were calculated for three different outcome measures: change in knowledge, attitudes, and helping behaviours. The results of the meta-analysis for these outcomes yielded a mean effect size of Glass’s Δ = 0.56 (95% CI = 0.38 – 0.74; p < 0.001), 0.28 (95% CI = 0.22 – 0.35; p < 0.001) and 0.25 (95% CI = 0.12 – 0.38; p < 0.001), respectively. Results were homogenous, and moderator analyses suggested no systematic bias or differences in results related to study design (with or without control group) or ‘publication quality’ (journal impact factor). The results demonstrate that MHFA increases participants’ knowledge regarding mental health, decreases their negative attitudes, and increases supportive behaviours toward individuals with mental health problems. The MHFA programme appears recommendable for public health action.     

Mental Health in Australia: Collaborative Community Practice

This paper explores the issues confronting service providers setting up child and family mental health programmes in conflict, post conflict and disaster areas. Drawing on clinical experience and research in humanitarian settings, it calls for greater attention to the child's perspective, their individuality and the cultural, social and political context in which they live. It argues that those concerned with the psychopathology of children in crises should widen their frame of reference beyond narrowly defined traumatic reactions to include other mental health and psychosocial issues, including the current problems of daily life and the needs of children with pre-existing psychiatric disorders. It recommends culturally valid means of assessment, the creation of age-appropriate services and training for primary healthcare workers. Children's mental health needs in crises are varied, complex and intimately connected with their needs for security, food, shelter, education and family connection. This requires holistic, rights-based approaches that can access resources to address basic needs, advocate for security and protection, and recognize and address the needs of the more vulnerable children. This is the approach recommended by the Inter Agency Standing Committee Guidelines for Mental health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings.     

The Process of Transforming Mental Health Services in Australia

Australia commenced a nationally coordinated transformation of its public and private mental health services in 1993. This paper presents an overview of the changes in mental health service delivery using data from the 2004 Australian National Mental Health Report. In the 10 years from 1993 to 2002, government spending on mental health increased 65 percent in real terms, with a 145 percent growth in expenditure for community-based services. Government subsidies to the private psychiatrist sector have declined. Consumer and carer participation in service planning and delivery increased, measures to improve quality introduced and patient level outcome measures are being adopted widely. However, some consumers with specific needs have been neglected and the transformation has not been implemented uniformly across the country.     

Experiences of graduates of the Mental Health First Aid-USA course

Mental health distress is common, yet many people lack mental health literacy and skills to help themselves and others. In this qualitative study, we used semi-structured interviews to ask graduates of Mental Health First Aid (MHFA-USA), a mental health promotion program designed to address such needs, about its impact. Interviewees described gaining knowledge, skills and confidence to help someone in distress, empathy for people with mental illness, and developing a sense of responsibility and permission to try to help when needed. They gave varied examples of using MHFA-USA skills with strangers, acquaintances, coworkers, clients and family members, and to help themselves, in a range of situations. We integrate these results into a tentative change process diagram, and speculate on its effects for people in distress and community norms regarding emotional and psychiatric distress. We then discuss the implications for MHFA-USA outcomes research.     

Instructor insights into delivery of Mental Health First Aid USA: A case study of mental health promotion across one state

The Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) course is being used as a tool for educating communities worldwide about mental health. MHFA instructors' experiences in delivering MHFA are not widely documented. In this study, MHFA instructors in 1 state were interviewed and surveyed about their experiences. The findings are that the most common reason for becoming an MHFA instructor was to have a community impact; the most frequently mentioned instructor-identified characteristic was strong teaching or presentation skills, with past clinical experience or education being helpful. Agencies typically deliver MHFA in a team-teaching model, utilize informal marketing or advertisement and often offer the course at a financial loss. Findings suggest that in delivering MHFA, agencies should be deliberate in selecting and training instructors and in creating an agency delivery plan.     

Evaluation of Expanded School Mental Health Programs

Expanded school mental health programs provide a full range of mental health services (assessment, treatment, case management, prevention) to youth in regular and special education, and typically involve close collaboration between schools and community agencies. A major challenge for these programs is documenting that provided services are of high quality and leading to enhanced outcomes for the youth and schools served by them. Dimensions of school mental health evaluations and a step-by-step process for conducting them are presented, using the example of a well established program in Baltimore. Challenges to such evaluation and strategies for overcoming challenges are also presented.