Agencies partner to offer training in mental health first aid

By Kris Verhage For Chronicle Media
Advocate Eureka is joining with the Woodford County Health Department and the Central Illinois Area Health Education Center in offering first aid training for mental health situations. (Photo courtesy of Advocate Eureka)

Advocate Eureka is joining with the Woodford County Health Department and the Central Illinois Area Health Education Center in offering first aid training for mental health situations. (Photo courtesy of Advocate Eureka)

Local health officials are conducting a course they hope will decrease the stigma surrounding mental illness and will teach people how to help those who may be experiencing a mental health crisis.

A Mental Health First Aid course is scheduled from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13, at Advocate Eureka Hospital, 101 S. Major St., Eureka.

The hospital is offering this class in partnership with the Woodford County Health Department and the Central Illinois Area Health Education Center.

Training is geared toward the public, especially parents, students, first-responders, leaders in faith communities and human resource professionals.

Participants who attend the entire eight-hour will be considered trained in identifying, understanding and responding to signs of mental illness and substance abuse. They will receive a certification lasting three years, said instructor Joanie Montoya, social work case manager at the hospital.

The course is part of a nationwide initiative to have 1 million people trained to help someone who’s developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis.

Public mental health training is a nationwide movement.

Public mental health training is a nationwide movement.

Training and better public understanding of mental health issues was cited as something to be addressed in the Advocate Eureka Hospital’s community needs assessment in 2015.  it was part of a mental health implementation plan.

“It’s important because we’re seeing more and more mental health diagnoses,” Montoya said. “People can recognize the signs and symptoms and give them some tools and have a more in-depth conversation.”

It’s hoped this course will help make people more comfortable discussing mental illness, she said.

“There’s no shame in it,” Montoya added. “If someone has cancer or diabetes, it’s easier to talk about those things.

“Our whole goal is to help people become more comfortable with talking about it,” she said.

Those in Montoya’s line of work are seeing more people with mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety; personality-based disorders like schizophrenia and antisocial behavior; and post-traumatic stress disorder, she said.

During the course, participants will learn to recognize signs of mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, psychosis, suicide attempts, self-injury and substance abuse. They’ll learn what questions to ask, what to listen for, how to provide resource information to someone seeking help and when to call 911, Montoya said.

Participants then will practice what they learned: how to react; what to say; what not to say; and how to intervene if someone is experiencing a crisis.

The $15 course fee covers a manual, lunch and snacks. Registration is required and can be made by calling (800) 323-8622or visiting www.advocatehealth.com/eureka.

Additional courses might be held this winter and spring, Montoya said.

Mental Health First Aid USA is managed by the National Council for Behavioral Health and the Missouri Department of Mental Health. To learn more about Mental Health First Aid, visit mentalhealthfirstaid.org.

 

— Agencies partner to offer training in mental health first aid —