As part of the Australian Government’s Mental Health Supports for Bushfire Affected Australians package, the Department of Health has engaged Phoenix Australia – Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health to deliver training to aid frontline workers to better support community members affected by the recent 19/20 bushfires across Australia. Specifically, this project aims to work with Emergency Services personnel to enhance their ability to:

Support community members recovery from bushfires
Promote their own resilience and psychological recovery from the bushfires
Support the resilience and wellbeing of their teams and organisations

About the training

This Psychological First Aid (PFA) training program has been developed for managers and supervisors of frontline emergency personnel affected by the bushfires, in order to support their employees and their own resilience and wellbeing.

Psychological First Aid (PFA) is a practical, flexible, and recommended approach to helping people in the aftermath of trauma. It can be delivered by both lay and professional helpers.

PFA helps to reduce the initial distress and assists people to cope better in the days and weeks following a traumatic event, such as a disaster, workplace accident, or assault.

Helpers trained in PFA ensure safety, provide emotional comfort and support, and offer practical advice and assistance to address people’s immediate needs.

In this online course, you will learn core skills of PFA, including simple psychological strategies, and gain the confidence to provide assistance and support to individuals affected by trauma.

Please note: While this registration is for face-to-face training, there will be a brief online component to be completed as a pre-requisite. Once registered, you will receive a confirmation email and a link to the course.

Who should do this course?

We recommend that managers or supervisors in the emergency services select this course only. If you are in a non-managerial emergency services role we recommend registering for our Trauma-informed Care course.

Costs

Phoenix Australia typically delivers this training for $390 per person. However, this training has been generously funded by the Australian Government’s Mental Health Supports for Bushfire Affected Australians package. As such, registration will be free of charge for eligible participants.