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Mental Health First Aid

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an evidence-based training created by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing designed to provide participants with the skills to identify, destigmatize, understand, and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorder, enabling those trained to offer immediate, concrete support. 

MHFA has shown to be effective internationally. Peer-reviewed studies show that individuals trained in the program: 

MHFA is not designed to replace the work of mental health professionals. Those who successfully complete the MHFA training will become a certified Mental Health First Aider. Mental Health First Aiders’ professional roles and responsibilities will not change as a result of this training. They are also under no obligation to publicly disclose that they have been trained in MHFA. 

Program Information

Learn about the Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training.

Length

 

  • Mental Health First Aid is an 8-hour training. 
  • The virtual training is a two half-day, 4-hour training. 
  • The hybrid and in-person trainings are a one day, 8-hour training.

Instructors

  • 20+ Northwestern staff members are certified Mental Health First Aid Instructors. 
  • There are a minimum of  two instructors present at each training.  

Pre-work

  • Participants are required to complete 2.5 hours of self-paced online pre-work before attending
    the hybrid and virtual trainings.
  • There is no pre-work for the in-person training.
  • You will be able to view the type of training offered: hybrid, virtual, or in-person when you click on "Register" below.

Cost

  • There is no cost to the participant.
  • The training is funded by the Office of Human Resources. 

Capacity

  • The maximum capacity per training is 25. 

Expectations

  • If participating in the hybrid or virtual training, participants are required to complete the pre-work before the training.
  • If participating in the virtual training, participants are expected to have their cameras turned on for the majority of the training.
  • Participants will attend the training in its entirety and actively participate. 
  • If special accommodations are needed, contact Well-being. 

Certification

Register

Mental Health First Aid is offered to faculty and staff.

Fall registration information
Dates Time Format Campus Location Register
Friday, October 27* 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Virtual Online Zoom Register
Tuesday, November 14 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Hybrid Evanston Norris University Register