Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) | in-person course

A first aid course for mental health

The issue of mental health has attracted increasing attention in recent years. Mental health problems and conditions are becoming increasingly common, with over 40 percent of people in Germany being affected at least once in their lifetime. The MHFA courses follow a scientifically evaluated, evidence-based program. Among other things, these evaluations found that the courses have a number of positive side-effects such as reducing stigmatizing attitudes and improving participants’ own mental health.

This course trains non-experts in spotting the signs of mental health problems and in applying suitable “first aid” to combat them. The objectives of this course include preventing shock-induced paralysis and the sensation of helplessness that people feel when they suddenly find themselves confronted by others experiencing an acute mental health crisis or developing psychological condition. After taking potential first aid measures, it is all about putting the people affected in touch with professional counseling services if need be.

The course consists of two days, each lasting 6 hours (plus breaks).

Trainer

Nadja Mayer
Central Institute of Mental Health in Mannheim

Language

German

Course dates

Day 1: Tue, October 07, 2025
Day 2: Wed, October 08, 2025
each from 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.

Target group

University of Bonn employees working in an advisory role, e.g. examination or doctoral office staff and degree program managers

Location

'Deutscher Herold'
Poppelsdorfer Allee 31-33, 53115 Bonn

Note

Attendance on both days is mandatory. If you are unable to attend in full, please let us know at an early stage.

Course content

Training non-experts in recognizing mental health problems affecting others
Main topics covered: depression, anxiety disorders, psychosis, addiction
Learning suitable “first aid” for the above conditions

General information

As with physical first aid courses, participation in an MHFA course is no substitute for medical or psychological/psychotherapeutic training. It is merely about learning and practicing first aid so that the person affected can be referred to professional help if necessary.
We would like to give participants the opportunity to discuss their experiences after the course has finished and so will be setting up a network and arranging regular meetings. Needless to say, attendance at these is entirely voluntary. More information will follow at the beginning of the course.

Information about registration

Dealing with mental health problems during the course can be stressful. Therefore, please only take part in the course if you consider yourself to be mentally stable.
After the course has finished, you will have the opportunity to sit an exam to qualify as a mental health first aider.
This course can be counted toward the “Professional Teaching Competence for Universities” certificate program in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) in the “Studierende beraten” (“Advising students”) module. Please contact your colleagues in the Bonn Center for Higher Education¹ if you are interested.

Registration via eCampus ²

FAQs

Can people from outside the University take part in the event too?

You will need to have a work or apprenticeship contract with the University of Bonn in order to attend a Healthy Campus Bonn training course.

Does the course cost anything to take part in?

No; the University of Bonn will cover the costs.

Do the rooms have barrier-free access?

Some of the rooms have barrier-free access. Should you need help getting in, please get in touch with your named contact in good time so that we can give you the support you need on the day of the event.

Is childcare provided during the event?

If you need childcare during an event, please contact the Office of Family Services Staff Unit³.

Guidelines MHFA

In addition to attending the MHFA courses, there is also the option of using the official guidelines, especially if there is a need for information and support at short notice. The guidelines provide tips on how to deal with affected persons and background information on the respective topic, such as dealing with depression, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts or problematic alcohol consumption. You can download the respective guidelines free of charge from the website⁴ of the international course provider.