An Garda Síochána Mental Health First Aid Training Programme Makes Major Advance

An Garda Síochána's Mental Health First Aid Programme formally commenced this week as the inaugural Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Instructor course for An Garda Síochána MHFA Training Facilitators got underway on 21 November 2023.

This programme is a specific action from An Garda Síochána's Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2021-2025 in which the organisation is committed to delivering new training, supports and other interventions to engender and support good mental health wellbeing in the workplace. One of these important support programmes is training all Garda personnel in Mental Health First Aid (MHFA).

Following a pilot restricted expression of interest and subsequent selection process, conducted by MHFA Ireland, 16 eligible applicants were shortlisted to take part in the training. On completion of the intensive 5-day training programme, successful candidates will be considered provisional MHFA Instructors by MHFA Ireland.  They must then co-deliver the standard MHFA course on two occasions to groups of between 15 to 20 participants in order to become fully accredited instructors certified by MHFA Ireland.

The newly accredited instructors will serve as Garda Síochána MHFA Training Facilitators; they will deliver the standard 2-day MHFA courses to all Garda personnel. The roll out of the programme will be co-ordinated by the Garda National Wellbeing Office who have responsibility for overseeing the delivery of the Strategy Implementation Plan.

Following the completion of the inaugural training and accreditation process, the programme will be reviewed, evaluated, and the expression of interest to become a MHFA Training Facilitator in An Garda Síochána will be open to the whole organisation in an appropriate process.