The Effects of Mental Health First Aid Training on Positive Mental Health and Mental Health Literacy on Office Workers: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Year 2025, Volume: 15 Issue: 1, 191 - 197, 28.03.2025

İlknur Yalçın , Ayşe Ergün

https://doi.org/10.33808/clinexphealthsci.1553470

Abstract

Objective: Mental health problems are among the most common health problems today.
This study was a randomized controlled trial in order to determine the effect of nurse-led mental health first aid training (MHFA) on mental health and mental health literacy (MHL) of office workers in Turkey.
Methods: The study was performed with 88 employees in the intervention group and 90 employees in the control group, who were randomly allocated. The data were collected with positive mental health (PMH) scale and MHL scale via online forms. Intervention group received 8-hour MHFA course. The primary outcomes included autonomy, personal satisfaction, problem solving and self-actualization, self-control, prosocial attitude and interpersonal relationship skills of PMH sub-dimensions. The secondary outcome was mental health literacy. Post-test was administered one week following the completion of the MHFA training. Data were analyzed using chi-square, independent sample t test and repeated-measures ANOVA.
Results: Following the MHFA training, post-test scores of the PMH scale personal satisfaction, self-control, autonomy, problem solving and self-actualization, prosocial attitude and interpersonal relationship skills were found to increase in favor of the intervention group (p<.05). It was determined that MHL scores of the intervention group increased (p<.001).
Conclusions: Mental health first aid training was determined to be an effective program and can be used in workplaces.

Keywords

mental health first aid, mental health literacy, positive mental health

Ethical Statement

This study was approved by Ethics Committee of Marmara University Health Sciences Faculty, Ethics Committee (Approval Date: 19.12.2019, Number: 230)

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