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How did you come across the opportunity of becoming a MECC for Mental Health trainer?

I received an email about a MECC for Mental Health information session and joined the webinar, and it really appealed to me. Particularly as during the pandemic there was a big focus on mental health but following the pandemic, it seemed as though we moved into new normal where people lost focus on asking each other how they are.

I personally hoped as chief executive, signing up would give sense of top-down commitment to mental health. It would also not only be a direct benefit to my own organisation but it would also focus on a wider-person centred approach which is what we are all about.

In your view what is the strategic case for MECC for Mental Health? For example, are there any organisational or local strategic priorities or initiatives that this would support?

The strategic case would be that by normalising mental health conversations, we would start to have conversations at an earlier stage, in hopes to become more preventative than reactive at a more severe stage. This would hopefully mean that we can start to support people to prevent rather than a focus on recovery.

How did you train to become a MECC for Mental Health trainer? Could you mention any highlights of the training (good and bad!).

Firstly, I completed the preliminary e-module learning and then attended the 2-day online ‘train the trainer’. I found the concept of delivery interesting as recipient of material and it gave me a clear understanding of what I was going to go on to deliver.

It allowed me to experience both sides of fence and It was a good way of getting a clear understanding and feel for all of the resources and from that I could form my own training.

MECC for Mental Health training was essentially a workshop in a box, as everything is there for you to deliver. It is Important that you get an understanding of how it all fits together.  The training helped put the theory together and into practise.

How was the experience of organising and delivering MECC for Mental Health training?

It was brilliant. RSPH are so organised and took the pressure off, with regular check-ins e.g. reminders to send out invites, alongside suggested texts. RSPH made organising the training very easy. I had no problems at all.

The only thing missing from an evaluation perspective was that during the training for the lead trainer session RSPH popped in but when delivering my training to trainers, some trainers had questions that were out of my scope/admin-type questions related to their training – it would have been useful if someone from RSPH had popped in and answered those questions.

Can you provide a brief description of the group/s you delivered the training to?  For example, the setting, location, roles, number of people, their need for the training.

Both sessions were delivered online with a cohort of approximately nine trainers. There was a good mix of people from frontline practitioners, trainers, colleagues from the third sector, NHS and local authorities. All had some level of mental health first aid training and really good foundation level of knowledge.

Some trainers had prior mental health training and may have come in thinking they knew a lot of this already. However, as the sessions went on trainers began to see the value of lower-level interventions. I felt as though I saw their journey throughout the training sessions and there was an increased appreciation of the role that MECC has.

Can you provide a brief description of the training programme you delivered?  For example, number of learning hours, focus on a particular context (e.g. social prescribing, GP practices)

The training sessions that I delivered lasted over two days (a total of 15 hours). We utilised the resources of NHS futures, the journals and slide decks. The sessions were very interactive with lots of discussion and reflection.

During day two participants buddied up and practised delivering to the rest of the group whilst working with the materials.

How do you think the training has been received by participants? Please provide a short overview of the evaluation.

There was 100% retention rate through the beginning of day one until the end of day. The feedback from trainers at the end were really positive and we had good feedback. This positive feedback was also mentioned during our follow up one to ones.

One thing to mention is that some of the mental health language in the training material may be difficult to understand as trainers may have previously received slightly different mental health training but I encouraged trainers to share this in the evolution and feedback.

What difference do you think MECC for Mental Health will bring to the people you trained?

I think it brings a much greater sense of awareness on how simple interventions can have such a big impact, like the ripple effect.  I think trainers have also seen how far-reaching it could be if these interventions become part and parcel with people, patients, communities and residents.

Whilst people are often forced to innovate and transform, this training is basic. However, it is very important, people may forget this and often need this time to reflect on such topics. The health literacy element was a really powerful reminder to some people and an instruction to others.

Any other comments you would like to add?

Really valuable programme, the time and effort put into the pilot was very impressive. It was very slick and organised.