The Veteran Family Program is offering free of charge, a Mental Health First Aid for the Veteran Community course in July, structured into one self-paced module and two live classroom modules, all delivered virtually. This new format will allow members of the Veteran community, including: CAF members, Veterans, former members of the RCMP, family members, friends, relatives, and other support persons to connect from anywhere to complete this course.
Why Should You Participate?
Created by the Mental Health Commission of Canada, this evidence-based course teaches participants to recognize signs that a person may be experiencing a decline in their mental well-being and assist that person to: talk about their mental well-being; support them through a mental health or substance use crisis; consider professional or other social supports and maintain their own mental well-being (Mental Health Commission of Canada). Studies have also shown that this program helps to reduce the social stigma and distance created by the negative attitudes and perceptions of mental illness through education. Facilitators of the course are trained through the Mental Health Commission of Canada and are familiar with the military culture and may be Veterans themselves.
Veterans and families who have participated in the Mental Health First Aid for the Veteran Community shared that the course opened their eyes “to the different perspectives of mental health”. They have reported having a “better understanding of how to deal with people living with mental health concerns”. Individuals said that the information shared was relevant and useful even for those who were not related to a Veteran.
“As a serving member and spouse of a [Veteran] with PTSD, this provides me with tools to assist co-workers and friends with mental health illness” – Participant, 2019
Why is This Program Offered?
When developing the Veteran Family Program, research facilitated by Lynda Manser (2019) suggested that successful transition to civilian life depended on evidence-based support strategies that addressed:
● psychoeducation regarding the impact of injury or illness on the family unit;
● information on recovery, and;
● giving families language to speak about the impact of the service member’s injury.
This research, in addition to the 2019 Veteran Suicide Mortality Study conducted by Veterans Affairs Canada, showed that “the risk [of suicide] for Veterans was observed to be consistently higher than in the Canadian general population” (Simkus, Hall and Heber, 2020), and demonstrated an increased need for accessible programming regarding injuries and illness for the Veteran Family community. To further express the need for Mental Health First Aid in the Veteran Community, research suggests that spouses are experiencing secondary traumatic stress response (Baker and Norris, 2011).
For more information about the MHFA-VC hosted by the Kingston Veteran Family Program, visit kmfrc.com/mhfa
By Sam Galati
A list of works cited can be referenced here: https://bit.ly/339bVT0