Overview

One in four (25%) young Australians will experience a common mental health illness in any one year. Youth mental health challenges are among the leading causes of falling grades, problems with friends, and relationships, substance use or abuse and they can have lifelong impact.

By attending a Youth MHFA course, participants improve their knowledge of mental illnesses, their treatments and appropriate first aid strategies. As well as an improved confidence in providing first aid to young people. 

You'll be equipped with the knowledge, confidence and skills to provide a young person with mental health information and support when it matters most!

You'll learn how to apply mental health first aid to young people across a range of common mental health problems and crisis situations, including:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Psychosis
• Substance use problems
• Suicidal thoughts and behaviours
• Panic attacks
• Non suicidal self-injury

Upon completion of the Youth MHFA course you will be able to:

• recognise the signs and symptoms of mental health problems in young people
• use an evidence-based action plan to initiate a mental health first aid conversation
• assess for a range of crisis situations and provide initial support
• understand the prevalence and impact of mental illness, risk factors and treatments and supports available
• distinguish between normal and expected changes during adolescence and development of mental health problems
• understand the scope of the Youth MHFAider role and medical rights of minors
• apply self-care practices as a Youth MHFAider

Any adult (aged 18+) can attend. 

Suitable for individuals, workplaces of all sizes, churches, volunteer and community-based groups. 

Participants will require suitable language, literacy and numeracy (LLN) skills to complete the following tasks/skills:

• Read information from a PowerPoint, Manual and whiteboard
• Listen and understand verbal information delivered by an English-speaking Licensed Instructor.

Please Note: This course is not therapy/counselling or a support group. Participants are encouraged to ensure they are mentally fit to attend this course.

All courses require a minimum of 6 participants. 

Public face-to-face courses conducted at Get Psych'd are capped at 16 participants. 

In-house face-to-face courses are capped at 20 participants. 

We currently only offer the Youth MHFA course face-to-face.

Absolutely. In-house courses are a convenient and flexible solution for workplaces, schools, churches and community groups. 

In-house courses are suitable for larger groups of greater than 10 participants. In-house face-to-face courses are capped at 20 participants. 

We offer in-house courses across regional Victoria.  

To find out more or to arrange an in-house course, simply send an email to mhfa@getpsychd.com.au with your contact details and we'll get in touch with you to discuss the available options.

Public face-to-face courses are delivered as 2 x 7 hour sessions over 2 days, which are delivered over either consecutive days or individual days. 

The course has been designed in 4 separate modules and can be delivered as 4 separate 3.5 hour sessions. This option is currently only available for in-house courses upon request.

The course fee for a public course is $290 (plus GST) per participant. 

Payment is required upfront when you register to participate in a public course. 

Participants who are experiencing financial hardship can discuss fee options by contacting us on (03) 4416 3221 or sending an email to mhfa@getpsychd.com.au.

To secure your place on an upcoming public course simply complete the online Registration Form, pay the course fee and you're done!

Registrations close 2 weeks prior to the commencement of a public course. Courses will be confirmed (or cancelled if minimum number of participants are not met) following this date.

You'll receive further details and participant information about your upcoming course via email. 

A public course may be cancelled by Get Psych'd, in circumstances including but not limited to, if minimum number of participants are not met. 

Where a public course is cancelled, participants who have already registered and paid, will be offered a place on another upcoming course. 

Where a suitable alternative upcoming course is not found, participants may request a full refund of the course fee. 

If your circumstances change and you are no longer able to attend the course you've registered and paid for, in the first instance we'll work with you to identify if a place on another upcoming course is suitable (subject to availability).  

The following applies to changes or cancellations of your course registration:

• prior to the course registration closing date (more than 14 days prior to the course) - full refund* of the course fee
• 14 days to 48 hours prior to the course - a 50% refund* of the course fee
• less than 48 hours prior to the course - no refund

*refunds are provided where a place on another upcoming course is unable to be found.

We understand people are busy, have families and other commitments, and finding 14-hours to attend a course can be challenging. 

We are open to feedback and suggestions on the timing and delivery of public courses, particularly around days of the week, weekdays or weekends, consecutive or individual days. 

Send us an email to mhfa@getpsychd.com.au and we'll consider this in our future planning and will try our best to accommodate.

The full 14-hours of the course are jam-packed with information, content, discussions and activities. Missing a session will mean you miss out on valuable learning opportunities. So participants should ensure they are available to attend the full 14-hour course. 

To successfully complete the course and be issued a certificate as a Youth Mental Health First Aider (Youth MHFAider), participants must attend the full 14-hour course. 

On successful completion of the course you will be issued a certificate as a Youth Mental Health First Aider (Youth MHFAider). 

Complete a short assessment at the end of the course to become an Accredited Youth Mental Health First Aider (Youth MHFAider). See How to become an Accredited Youth MHFAider? for more details. 

At the end of the Youth MHFA course you can complete a short assessment to become an Accredited Youth Mental Health First Aider (Youth MHFAider). Accreditation is valid for 3 years. 

Refresher training is required after 3 years, which is either a 4-hour face-to-face course or 2 x 2.5-hour online video conferencing course. 

In the sixth year, the full course must be completed again.