Psychological First Aid

Get Psychological First Aid (PFA) training

This Psychological First Aid (PFA) training course will help you to provide support to people who have experienced an emergency or stressful life event in ways that respect culture, religion, and dignity.

Over the course of three weeks, experts from the UK Health Security Agency will help you gain the practical skills to deliver Psychological First Aid.

You’ll learn the best practices for providing support to those that need it whilst also ensuring you maintain your own wellbeing.

Understand how traumatic events impact mental wellbeing

There are many responses to traumatic events and because of this, you may have to adapt to people’s different needs when delivering PFA.

This course will show you how traumatic events, such as emergencies or personal crises, impact mental health as you learn how to distinguish between signs of distress and signs of mental health conditions.

With this knowledge, you’ll better understand the type of care and support to give different people.

Learn to identify those most in need of Psychological First Aid

Next, you’ll focus on how you can best prepare for the services and support you can offer with PFA.

Within this, you’ll also learn how to identify high-risk groups and those most in need of PFA.

Discover emotional support and coping strategies

On the final week, you’ll learn how to identify whether someone needs mental or physical support. Once identified, you’ll discover how to implement techniques for effective listening, promoting well-being, and giving bereavement support.

Finally, you’ll discover how you need to maintain your personal well-being whilst delivering PFA. You’ll learn how to manage stress, where to get help, and how to support yourself and others.

This course is designed for anyone who would like to learn how to support people who have experienced a traumatic event. For example, in response to acute traumatic events and emergencies, or to support friends, family and colleagues who are experiencing acute and overwhelming stress during a personal crisis. You do not have to be a specialist to deliver PFA.

Professionals that may benefit from this training in the context of their work include health and social care staff, first responders, frontline public-sector staff, essential workers, volunteers, supervisors and managers supporting staff or volunteers.

This course is designed for anyone who would like to learn how to support people who have experienced a traumatic event. For example, in response to acute traumatic events and emergencies, or to support friends, family and colleagues who are experiencing acute and overwhelming stress during a personal crisis. You do not have to be a specialist to deliver PFA.

Professionals that may benefit from this training in the context of their work include health and social care staff, first responders, frontline public-sector staff, essential workers, volunteers, supervisors and managers supporting staff or volunteers.

• Demonstrate an understanding of what Psychological First Aid is
• Identify for whom it is suited and how to help them
• Identify how to better support yourself and peers in such crises
• Engage with further reading into psychosocial support in different contexts