The Effectiveness of Mental Health First Aid Intervention Among Undergraduate Students in Switzerland

Institut et Haute Ecole de la Santé la Source

Status: Completed

Conditions: Preventative Medicine

Treatments: Other: Mental Health First Aid (educational training program)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06035770

2019-01296

Details and patient eligibility

About

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an educational training program which has been proven effective at increasing knowledge, improving attitudes and reducing the stigma of mental illness among individuals/the general population. Although MHFA has proven effective world-wide, no study has examined the effectiveness of MHFA in Switzerland and very few studies have examined the long-term effects of MHFA and how they might be influenced by cultural differences. This study is a randomized control trial (RCT) that examines the effectiveness of a 12-hour MHFA training program that aims to improve undergraduate students' knowledge of, behaviours towards mental illness and to reduce stigmatization towards mental illness. All participants were 2nd-year students and they were randomly assigned either to an intervention group that would receive the MHFA training course or to a control group without any intervention during the study period. However, the control group had the option to receive the MHFA course after the 12 months of study follow-up was completed. Both groups were assessed at three time points: T0: Baseline survey from mid-September to October 2019, completed by both groups.

Intervention: MHFA training program from October 2019-December 2019. T1: Post-intervention with first follow-up survey three months after the MHFA training intervention completed by both groups (from March to May 2020). T2: Follow-up 12 months after the MHFA/ensa training intervention in December 2020 and completed by both groups.

Enrollment: 107 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• 2nd year undergraduate students from universities of applied science in Lausanne and Yverdon-les-Bains.
• ≥18 years old.

Exclusion criteria

• Working and part-time students.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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107 participants in 2 patient groups

Mental Health First Aid training program

Experimental group

Description:

The intervention is a 12-hour face-to-face training course given in small groups. It was delivered as four 3-hour sessions over 4 consecutive weeks.

Treatment:

Other: Mental Health First Aid (educational training program)

control group

No Intervention group

Description:

The control group received no intervention during the intervention period. However, they will participate in surveys at three time points (before the intervention, 3 months after the intervention and one year after the intervention). Once their final assessment is completed, controls will be offered the opportunity to take the MHFA training course, if they wish.