QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) & Mental Health First Aid Training
Be the difference. Learn how to recognize and respond to a mental health crisis.
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) and QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) are evidence-based trainings that equip individuals with the skills to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental illness, substance use disorders, and suicidal crisis. These programs empower participants to provide initial support and connect individuals to the appropriate care and resources.
SYFS offers Mental Health First Aid and QPR training across Massachusetts for schools, faith-based organizations, businesses, corporations, law enforcement, parent groups, and more. Whether you’re a teacher, first responder, employer, or community member, these trainings provide valuable tools to support those in need.
Join us in creating a more informed and compassionate community. Everyone can benefit from learning these life-saving skills. Contact us today to schedule a training!
Topics Covered
- Depression and mood disorders
- Anxiety disorders
- Trauma
- Psychosis
- Substance Use disorders
Interventions Learned
When you take a course, you learn how to apply the Mental Health First Aid action plan in a variety of situations, including when someone is experiencing:
- Panic attacks
- Suicidal thoughts or behaviors
- Nonsuicidal self-injury
- Acute psychosis (e.g., hallucinations or delusions)
- Overdose or withdrawal from alcohol or drug use
- Reaction to a traumatic event
The opportunity to practice — through role plays, scenarios, and activities — makes it easier to apply these skills in a real-life situation. Mental Health First Aid teaches about recovery and resiliency – the belief that individuals experiencing these challenges can and do get better, and use their strengths to stay well.
The adult Mental Health First Aid course is appropriate for anyone 18 years and older who wants to learn how to help a person who may be experiencing a mental health related crisis or problem. Topics covered include anxiety, depression, psychosis, and addictions.
Youth Mental Health First Aid is designed to teach parents, family members, caregivers, teachers, school staff, peers, neighbors, health and human services workers, and other caring citizens how to help an adolescent (age 12-18) who is experiencing a mental health or addictions challenge or is in crisis. Youth Mental Health First Aid is primarily designed for adults who regularly interact with young people. The course introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a 5-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations. Topics covered include anxiety, depression, substance use, disorders in which psychosis may occur, disruptive behavior disorders (including AD/HD), and eating disorders.
Mental Health First Aid for Older Adults teaches you how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. This 8-hour training — which focuses on the unique experiences and needs of adults over the age of 65 — gives you the skills you need to reach out and provide initial support to someone who may be developing a mental health or substance use problem and help connect them to the appropriate care.
WHO SHOULD TAKE IT
• Families
• Caretakers
• Employers
• Nursing staff
WHAT IT COVERS
• A discussion of life changes that occur in older adults.
• A discussion of the specific risk factors faced by older adults, such as chronic health conditions.
• How to discern the difference between talking about death and suicidal ideation. A breakdown of psychosis, dementia and delirium.
• How to communicate effectively with those who need help while using respectful language.
• How to combat the stigma around substance-related problems in the older adult population.
The course is taught to police, first responders, corrections officers and other public safety audiences around the country. Mental Health First Aid for Public Safety provides officers with more response options to help them de-escalate incidents and better understand mental illnesses so they can respond to mental health related calls appropriately without compromising safety
Why Mental Health First Aid for Veterans, service members, and their families?
While military service often fosters resilience in individuals and families, some service members may experience mental health or substance use challenges. Thirty percent of active duty and reserve military personnel deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan have a mental health condition requiring treatment – approximately 730,000 men and women, with many experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder and major depression. Sadly, less than 50 percent of returning veterans in need receive any mental health treatment. The Veterans Administration reports that approximately 20 veterans die by suicide every day.
- Break down the stigma associated with mental illness like anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), psychosis, bipolar disorder, and substance use disorders
- Reach out to those who suffer in silence, reluctant to seek help
- Let veterans know that support is available in their community
- Provide community resource information
- Make mental healthcare and treatment accessible to thousands in need
What you learn
Key components of the module for military members, veterans and their families include:
- A discussion of military culture and its relevance to the topic of mental health
- A discussion of the specific risk factors faced by many service members and their families such as trauma, both mental and physical, stress, separation, etc.
- Applying the ALGEE action plan in a number of scenarios designed specifically for service members, their families and those that support them
- A review of common mental health resources for service members, their families and those who support them
Question Persuade Refer (QPR) Training
The QPR suicide prevention training teaches three simple yet powerful steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide – Question, Persuade and Refer.
Just as people trained in CPR help save lives, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone to the help they need. Each year, thousands of Americans, like you, are saying “yes” to saving the life of a friend, colleague, sibling, or neighbor by becoming a part of the QPR life-saving network.
QPR can be learned in a free, 90 – 120 minute virtual training course. Anyone age 16 and over is encouraged to take QPR training – parents, friends, neighbors, teachers, ministers, doctors, nurses, office supervisors, police officers, volunteer coaches, youth organization leaders, caseworkers, firefighters, and anyone who might be strategically positioned to recognize and refer someone at risk of suicide
