Be an Instructor | Mental Health First Aid

Become an
Mental Health First Aid instructor

In 2022, all attendees at face-to-face Mental Health First Aid® Instructor Training Courses will need to be fully vaccinated. Courses will proceed in locations where current public health advice indicates course delivery is permitted with COVID-safe adjustments and where delivery is not impacted by travel restrictions and border closures.

Priority placements in 2022 are being facilitated for waitlisted course participants impacted from course cancellations due to lockdowns in 2021. Once waitlisted participants are confirmed, MHFA™ courses with additional vacancies will be made publicly available for new course applicants. These placements are expected to be limited in the first half of the year. Please check our Instructor Course Training calendar for the latest information regarding the status of individual Instructor Training Courses and any current vacancies available for new course applicants.

Mental Health First Aid Instructors

Instructors are key to delivering Mental Health First Aid across Australia and we are working together to train over 1 million Mental Health First Aiders™.

Accredited MHFA Instructors are skilled facilitators with a passion for improving the mental health of their communities

MHFA Australia trains and accredits appropriately trained individuals to deliver MHFA courses.

Becoming an MHFA instructor has changed my life in many ways… It is so rewarding to see the difference made in our community by the courses I teach.

Reasons to become an accredited MHFA instructor

You will be part of the global Mental Health First Aid movement, with over 2.6 million people trained by over 5000 Instructors around the world.

The Australian Mental Health First Aid community actively encourages and supports one another to deliver MHFA courses and provide Mental Health First Aid.

Make a differenceYou will improve mental health literacy in your community, and teach members of the public how to support co-workers, family members and friends with mental health problems to find appropriate help.
Training & supportYou will receive intensive, high quality training to become an Instructor, including all of the materials to get you started in delivering courses. Ongoing support from MHFA Australia helps you be the best Instructor you can be.
Evidence-basedYou can have confidence that MHFA training has a real, positive impact on participants. The course is built on a strong international evidence-base, with evaluations consistently showing that participants are more confident and offer first aid to people with mental health problems.
AutonomyYou will be able to deliver the course where and when suits you and set your own price. All with ongoing support from MHFA Australia.

Apply to be an MHFA instructor

Be an MHFA instructor

Why Mental Health First Aid

Innovative and world leadingMental Health First Aid is a global innovative program that was inspired by the successful physical first aid model. Developed in Australia in 2000, it is regularly updated to ensure that is drawing upon the latest evidence base. The program is available in over 25 countries.
Evidence-basedMHFA courses are based on the expert consensus, of people with lived experience of mental health problems and professionals, on what support a mental health first aider should provide. MHFA Australia has worked in partnership with researchers at the University of Melbourne, to develop guidelines for action that cover a number of mental health problems and crises.
Internationally acclaimedThe MHFA Program has been recognised with a number of Australian and international awards, including the THeMHS Medal. It has been recognised in the UK as an example of radical efficiency and has been listed in the USA by SAMSHA on their National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP).

Comments and feedback from MHFA instructors

The strengths of the course is that it empowers oneself to empower others and increase education and knowledge.

Karina
It allows you to walk away confident of independently delivering the course. It is very structured and all that you need is given to you.

Tess
A curriculum that has a long and empirical history of research, design, monitoring and objective evaluation and continuous improvement.

Nick