1 in 5 adults in the United States lives with a mental illness. Adult Mental Health First Aid teaches participants how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges among adults.  The curriculum includes; common signs and symptoms of mental health challenges, common signs and symptoms of substance use challenges, how to interact with a person in crisis, how to connect a person with help, and expanded content on trauma, substance use and self-care. 

As a trained instructor in the Adult Mental Health First Aid curriculum, Laura Weddle completed 29 training courses in FY 2022, with a total of 404 participants trained. Of the 404 people trained, 249 completed evaluations. Upon completion of the training, evaluations showed an increase in knowledge regarding mental health challenges and skills needed to perform Mental Health First Aid. 

Exemplary quotes included: 

“The course was an excellent introduction to mental health first aid and good refresher on social and listening skills. I think that it will be very beneficial to help me as a faculty member to identify students in risky and vulnerable situations.” 

“I appreciated the correlation of mental health to physical health. That is not something everyone understands easily but making that comparison can help bridge the gap and fight the stigma of getting help for mental health challenges.” 

“The most helpful part of this course was gaining more knowledge of the signs and symptoms of mental health challenges. It is imperative to understand the signs and symptoms as well as take an individual's culture into consideration when offering support and assistance.”