Mental Health First Aid, like any other type of first aid, is the help given to a person before appropriate professional help or treatment can be obtained. Mental Health First Aid is the help given to someone experiencing a mental health problem before other help can be accessed.
The aims of Mental health First Aid are:
- To preserve life
- To provide help to prevent the mental health problem or crisis developing into a more serious state.
- To promote the recovery of good mental health
- To provide comfort to a person experiencing distress.
- To promote understanding of mental health issues.
The Mental Health First Aid training does not teach people to be therapists. However it does train people:
- How to ask about suicide
- How to recognise the signs of mental health problems or distress
- How to provide initial help
- How to guide a person towards appropriate professional help.