Psychological First Aid (PFA) for Mental Wellness: Helping Others in Times of Distress and Crisis

Welcome to Psychological First Aid (PFA) for Mental Wellness: Helping Others in Times of Distress and Crisis.

Psychological First Aid aims to provide you with basic knowledge and skills to help adults who are affected by a crisis in life. The crisis which includes man-made, natural, and personal, can be overwhelming for an individual to cope with.

PFA is not something that only professionals can do. Neither is it professional counselling nor attempting to diagnose someone’s mental state. Instead, it is about making a distressed individual feel safe, connected to others, calm and hopeful, and having access to social, physical, and emotional support. By applying Psychological First Aid skills, you will be able to support the individual through the crisis and refer them to professional help like counselors.

1 Day Psychological First Aid Course

This 1 Day hands-on practical course will also teach you to recognize signs of stress and how you can cope with stress. Furthermore, you will also learn the warning signs This course is for all working professionals who encounter distressful, emotional and crisis situations that involve them, co-workers, and clients. Although everyone is affected in some way by distress, there is a wide range of reactions and feelings that individuals experience. Thus, it is important to assess the immediate concerns and needs of an individual in the aftermath of a crisis and what you can do to provide comfort, practical care, and support

Read Also: 2 Day Certified Mental Wellness Coach

Upon completion of the course, learners will be able to:

• Acquire knowledge and skills to recognise the signs of distress.
• Help you to know the most supportive things to say and do for people who are very distressed.
• Learn different approaches to engage new situations safely for yourself and others, and not to cause harm by your actions.
• Build your own capacity and emotional resilience to reduce the initial distress of others and promote flexible coping to help them overcome their crisis.
• Practical suggestions about how to provide emotional support with empathetic communication skills as you practice the principles of PFA.

• Working professionals who are keen to provide psychological support in the workplace.
• HR personnel, department heads who require to handle the crisis in the workplace
• Anyone looking to become more resilient, build self-esteem, and let go of the hurts and hang-ups that are holding them back.
• Student Leaders, counselors or any Individuals who are keen to equip themselves with to skills helping others in distress
• Anyone who is keen to equip themselves with listening and empathic communication skills to provide emotional support to someone in distress.

“Facilitator is very experienced and is able to provide practical examples and approaches.” – Pui Yoke, Head of ODOS Group Services, SMU

“Taking on the PFA role can be done by anyone, he surely gave us the confidence. I have learnt that the role of providing Psychological First Aid (PFA) isn’t about solving problems or giving solid solutions. The guidance to the three actions of look, listen and link is very useful for my application.” – Tammy Fan, Lecturer, Nanyang Polytechnic

“Anil is experienced and shared practical techniques on Psychological First Aid (PFA).” – Serene Chiam, Senior Tech Executive, Singapore Polytechnic

“Subject content was relevant and useful. I felt benefited from his background knowledge of the subject. The sections related to the practical skills that were suggested can be applied in real life easily.” – Sanuse Nasir, MOE

“Engaging, fun, and definitely a content expert in the workshop delivered. Role-play, facilitation, case studies/examples were useful to reinforce the learning.” – Muhammad Yusuf, Senior Executive, Duke-NUS Medical School

Mr Anil Singh (Master of Social Sciences, National University of Singapore)

Anil is currently a Senior Associate Lecturer, Trainer, Academic Coach, and Mental Wellness coach with more than 10 years of experience at various government and private institutions. He is a highly versatile educator and trainer in the areas of Psychology, Sociology, and Public Safety & Security. As a mental wellness coach, Anil is a passionate advocate of mental wellness in schools, workplaces, and personal life. He aspires to motivate organisations and individuals to develop a culture of mental wellness for the staff and clients. Prior to lecturing full-time, Anil was a Community Outreach Manager with the National Addictions Management Service (NAMS), Institute of Mental Health (IMH), and an Executive Director of a community drug rehabilitation centre. Anil holds a Master of Social Sciences from the National University of Singapore, a Graduate Certificate in Teaching and Assessing Adult Learners (SUSS), and a Graduate Certificate in Social Sciences (Professional Counselling) from the Swinburne University of Technology.