Thanks to funding from the State Office of Rural Health, the Virginia Rural Health Association offers training at no charge for those living or working in rural areas.
Please Note: These are not instructor certification courses. Instructor trainings are offered by the National Council on Mental Wellbeing. More information can be found here.
Virtual Teen Mental Health First Aid
Teen Mental Health First Aid teaches teens in grades 9-12, or ages 14-18, how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges among their friends and peers.
The course can be done in six sessions (45 minutes each) or 3 sessions (90 minutes each). Teen MHFA can be used to meet state mental health or substance use education requirements. It can be taught as a standalone course or as part of a school health curriculum.
Please contact Meghan Stump (meghan@vrha.org) to discuss implementing tMHFA in your school.
Virtual Adult Mental Health First Aid Training
Free for anyone living in or working for a rural designated county in Virginia!
2 hours of pre-work must be completed online prior to the virtual instructor-led session.
Adult Mental Health First Aid teaches people how to recognize signs of mental health or substance use challenges in adults ages 18 and older, how to offer and provide initial help, and how to guide a person toward appropriate care if necessary. Topics covered include anxiety, depression, psychosis, and addictions.
*10 or more participants required to be eligible for training*