Associations Between the Quality of Mental Health First Aid Received and Change in Psychosocial Outcomes Among Adults With Mental Health Problems

Abstract

Background:

Mental health first aid refers to the support provided by lay people to someone developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis. Best-practice mental health first aid is defined by expert consensus guidelines describing recommended and non-recommended support actions, which underpin Mental Health First Aid training programmes. While such guidelines aim to improve social responses to mental health problems, little longitudinal evidence exists on their association with outcomes for people receiving this support.

Aims:

This study examined the association between the quality of mental health first aid received from someone close and subsequent psychosocial and help-seeking outcomes.

Method:

A community sample of 468 adults who reported a mental health problem completed questionnaires at baseline and 6-month follow-up assessing the mental health first aid actions they had received from someone close to them, psychological distress, internalised stigma, quality of life, functioning, relationship quality, perceived change in mental health and professional help-seeking. Regression models were used to examine associations between recommended and non-recommended mental health first aid actions and changes in outcomes at follow-up.

Results:

Receiving a greater number of recommended mental health first aid actions was associated with improved relationship quality (b = 0.06, 95% CI 0.02, 0.10), better perceived mental health change (b = 0.04, 0.01, 0.08), decreased internalised stigma (b = −0.02, −0.03, −0.01), and increased odds of seeking help from a general practitioner (OR = 1.15, 1.04, 1.28). Receiving non-recommended actions was associated with increased internalised stigma (b = 0.05, 0.00,0.10) and psychological distress (b = 0.63, 0.05, 1.20), but also with improved relationship quality (b = 0.18, 0.04, 0.10). Effect sizes were small overall.

Conclusions:

These findings provide evidence that high quality mental health first aid is associated with meaningful changes in psychosocial and help-seeking outcomes for people experiencing mental health problems. Best-practice mental health first aid may contribute to improved social responses to mental illness and reduced stigma within close relationships.