Denver Community Trains for Mental Health First Aid
Members of the Denver Jewish community were given the opportunity to take an 8 hour course and become certified in Mental Health First Aid this past Sunday at the Bais Menachem Chabad Center.
The course was arranged by the Areivim Task Force of Denver, which was recently formed to address the needs and challenges of mental health in the community.
Denver Shliach Rabbi Yisroel Engel, a member of the task force, helped organize the Mental Health First Aid course at Bais Menachem, under the auspices of the Mental Health Center of Denver.
Modeled after a successful program in Australia, the First Aid Course provides training to identify and act as a first responder in the face of mental crises.
Anonymous
They should have one in Crown Heights.
rg
Great work!! We not only need this in crown heights too, but in every community!
Playing with fire
The worst thing for those who suffer is to be offered help by someone who took a 2 hour class in mental health.
“Helping” others is cute, it makes us feel better, but the damage that can be done via standardizing people with grief as if they have “stages” to “pass” can only add salt to their wounds.
Even the most experienced physicians treat these cases with such care and at times make things worse.
Surgery cannot be reduced to a public first aid certificate.
I’d beg to be careful with who you expose your secrets to, regardless of “training” or expertise. Let alone to the hands of a well-meaning social talker who took “mashpia” training.
Giving advice to others in matters of their life is an incredible responsibility. Who takes the cost when the marriage ends with prison time? Or if their advice results in suicide?
There’s no such thing as a quick short-cut “First Aid” for guidance with delicate issues. Its like playing with fire, and at the expense of others and their problems.
common sense
You are correct on how delicate mental help is.
But wrong about the course! This is a first aid teaching what do do in case of Emergency (with no professionals around) just till professional help comes!!
This training will only help situations because A) it makes people aware of how serious it is and the necessity for licensed professionals (Exactly your point) and B) what is the best thing to do in case of Emergency till professional help comes!!