The Long-Term Outcomes of Mental Health First Aid Training for University Students

Abstract

This study aimed to address current gaps in the literature on the impacts of Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training by comparing long-term outcomes on different cohorts. University students studying health and non-health degrees, university staff and community members who had completed MHFA within the past three years completed a survey to assess their mental health literacy, and their use of knowledge and skills acquired through the training. The study found few significant differences between the different group outcomes and between different time points post-completion of MHFA. This study found that although participant-reported measures show positive outcomes from MHFA, further research on the common tools used to rate mental health literacy and how mental health literacy impacts behaviours and help-seeking would provide greater insight into the outcomes of running MHFA as a mental health prevention and early intervention program at universities.