Mental Health First Aid (MHFA), an early intervention training program for general audiences, has been promoted as a means for improving population-level behavioral health (BH) in rural communities by encouraging treatment-seeking. Using a mixed-methods approach to study MHFA trainings in rural areas, this project examines MHFA's appropriateness and impacts in rural contexts. This study provides preliminary evidence that MHFA holds promise for improving rural BH, however MHFA alone cannot compensate for weaknesses in rural BH infrastructure.

Publications

• Mental Health First Aid in Rural Communities: Appropriateness and Outcomes
  Journal Article
  Maine Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 01/2016
  Mental Health First Aid (MHFA), an early intervention training program for general audiences, has been promoted as a means for improving population-level behavioral health in rural communities by encouraging treatment-seeking. This study examined MHFA's appropriateness and impacts in rural contexts.