Mental Health First Aid & CALM Conversations
Join us for a full day of training in MHFA and CALM to learn how to recognize crisis warning signs and respond!
Select date and time
Location
Online
About this event
**Requires 2 hours of self-paced prework in order to attend the training
The Veteran Spouse Network is excited to offer a full day of suicide prevention training FREE to anyone nationwide, including both Mental Health First Aid and Conversations on Access to Lethal Means (CALM Conversations) with VSN staff members/instructors Ashley Craig and Jamela Davis.
The Veteran Spouse Network is providing Adult Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is a skills-based training that teaches people how to identify, understand and respond to signs and symptoms of a mental health or substance use challenge in adults ages 18 and over.
What you learn in MHFA:
Key components of the module for military members, veterans, and their families include:
- A discussion of military culture and its relevance to the topic of mental health
- A discussion of the specific risk factors faced by many service members and their families, such as trauma, both mental and physical, stress, separation, etc.
- Applying the ALGEE action plan in several scenarios designed specifically for service members, their families, and those who support them
- A review of common mental health resources for service members, their families, and those who support them
Next, the Conversations on Access to Lethal Means (CALM Conversations) workshop provides individuals with the tools to have a very important conversation about safety around and access to lethal means. In our military and veteran family community, reducing access to lethal means, such as firearms and medication, can determine whether a person at risk for suicide lives or dies. To learn more about the CALM workshop, please read on.
CALM: Conversations on Access to Lethal Means is a suicide prevention training that encourages the safe storage of lethal means during a suicidal crisis. By temporarily putting time and distance between a suicidal person and highly lethal means, a life may be saved.
The effectiveness of CALM is not limited to clinical interactions. Many people at risk for suicide do not ever seek or receive formal mental or physical health care for these issues. Fortunately, CALM can be implemented by anyone who is concerned about a relative, friend, or someone with whom they work. These workshops add specific CALM strategies to typical gatekeeper training and allow participants to observe and practice the techniques. If your work (or life) frequently puts you in touch with people who are at their lowest–perhaps you’re a defense or divorce attorney, tend bar, serve eviction notices, teach court-ordered drunk driving classes–this workshop may help you save lives.
But this workshop is not just for mental health professionals or individuals working with those who could be at risk. This workshop is for anyone who may be wondering how to have a conversation with a friend, loved one, or coworker about safety and access to lethal means.
What Conversations on Access to Lethal Means is and is not:
- CALM is anti-suicide not anti-gun or anti-drugs
- CALM is a specific and effective part of suicide prevention
- CALM is not a suicide risk assessment
- CALM is not the answer but should be included –anyone can do it – not just professionals
Participants in CALM training will:
- Become more knowledgeable about suicide facts
- Learn how to inquire about the accessibility of lethal means
- Learn how to suggest safe storage
- Leand about results of lethal means reduction in countries outside the U.S.
**We must have a minimum of 5 registrants.can also
For more information, reach out to Ashley Craig, Suicide Prevention Coordinator, at vsn@austin.utexas.edu
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Frequently asked questions
You are not permitted to attend without completing the pre-course work. This work is designed to prepare you for the session and improve your learning experience, ensuring your participation is crucial for the success of the session.
Mental Health First Aid is a course that teaches the skills needed to recognize and respond to signs and symptoms of mental health and substance use challenges, as well as how to provide someone with initial support until they are connected with appropriate professional help.
Teaches skills to recognize and respond to mental health and substance use challenges. This evidence-based course uses community-specific scenarios and activities to prepare participants to provide initial support until professional help is available. Participants learn a 5-step Action Plan (ALGEE)
MHFA should not be considered a replacement for professional help. MHFA is designed to support an individual in need of help until appropriate professional help arrives.
No. Mental Health First Aiders and Instructors should not diagnose or provide therapy when operating in either of these capacities. Only a trained and licensed mental health professional can diagnose someone with a mental illness. First Aiders and Instructors can be aware of changes.
Yes. Peer-reviewed studies from Australia and across the globe show that the program improves the mental health of both the individual administering care and the one receiving it, expands knowledge of mental health challenges... Learn at https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/about/research/