AHECWW offers Mental Health First Aid trainings for professionals and community members throughout western Washington. The spring 2018 trainings are scheduled for locations in our area, and additional locations will be added in the summer and autumn. Use the sign-up links to apply for a place in one of these upcoming classes.

Monday, April 9: Peninsula College, Port Angeles, Washington. E-mail the completed registration form to info@ahecww.org.

Each training consists of a full 8-hour day from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. with a lunch break on your own. Those who successfully complete the full day and quiz are eligible for a Mental Health First Aid certificate which remains valid for three years. Class size is limited to 25, and the trainings are offered free of charge to ensure wide accessibility for people of all backgrounds. Students in allied health courses of study are encouraged to consider this training.

Mental Health First Aid certifications are available for adults who interact with youth (Youth Mental Health First Aid) and for adults generally (Mental Health First Aid). The trainings in Everson and Aberdeen will offer Youth Mental Health First Aid certification.

Contact AHECWW for more information at: info@AHECWW.org or call 360-383-3170.

Why Mental Health First Aid?

Enroll in a Mental Health First Aid course to learn a five-step action plan to help loved ones, colleagues, neighbors and others cope with mental health or substance use problems.

Similar to traditional First Aid and CPR, Mental Health First Aid is help provided to a person developing a mental health problem or experiencing a crisis until professional treatment is obtained or the crisis resolves.

Mental Health First Aid is an evidence-based public education and prevention tool – it improves the public’s knowledge of mental health and substance use problems and connects people with care for their mental health or substance use problems.

Mental Health First Aid is a project of the National Council for Behavioral Health

Mental Health First Aid was originally created in Australia in 2001 under the auspices of the University of Melbourne, and is now international with programs in countries such as the United Kingdom, China, Canada, Finland and Singapore.

The National Council for Behavioral Health – a national trade group with more than 2,500 member organizations serving millions of Americans nationwide – helped bring Mental Health First Aid to the United States in 2008 with the goal of making it as common as traditional First Aid and CPR are today.