Requesting Adult Mental Health First Aid 

from the Tribal TTA Center 

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA)1teaches you how to identify, understand, and respond to signs 

of mental health and substance use challenges among adults. This fact sheet provides 

information on what communities should know prior to requesting MHFA training and 

technical assistance (TTA).

Course Overview 

The 7.5-hour Adult MHFA Course focuses on recognizing the patterns of thoughts, feelings, 

behaviors, and appearance that show there might be a mental health challenge. Participants 

are taught the MHFA Action Plan so they can apply it to non-crisis and crisis situations. MHFA is 

comprised of ten learning segments. The ten learning segments include the following: 

• Segment 1: Welcome to Mental Health

First Aid

• Segment 2: Mental Health and Mental

Disorders

• Segment 3: Role of the Mental health

First Aider and Self-Care

• Segment 4: Common Mental health

Disorders in the United States

• Segment 5: Recognizing the Signs and

Symptoms

• Segment 6: ALGEE: Mental Health First

Aid Action Plan

• Segment 7: MHFA for Early Signs and

Symptoms

• Segment 8: MHFA for Worsening Signs

and Symptoms

• Segment 9: MHFA for Crisis Situations

• Segment 10: Self-care for the Mental

Health First Aider

The MHFA instructor-led course can be taught in a single 7.5-hour session, broken into two 

sessions delivered over 2 days, or four sessions and delivered over 4 days in-person, virtually, or 

in a hybrid format.

In-Person

Registration is not required but suggested. Trainers can host the training and submit required 

documentation to the MHFA portal for certification after the training has been completed. 

Requires printing documents for pre-course work.

Virtual

The virtual MHFA course is 2 hours for self-paced and 6.5 hours instructor-led virtual. 

Registration is required prior to the course to complete the pre-course work required for online 

course training.

1

From the National Council for Mental Wellbeing
www.samhsa.gov | 1-877-SAMHSA-7 (1-877-726-4727)

2

Blended

The blended MHFA course is 2 hours self-paced virtual and; 6.5 hours instructor-led in-person. 

Registration is required prior to the course to complete pre-course work to be able to 

participate in in-person course training.

Materials

Manuals for each participant are required. Participant Processing Guides (PPG) are optional; 

however, PPGs enhance the learning experience for each participant as an additional resource. 

The manual’s cost estimate is $19.95. PPG’s cost estimate is $9.95. Printings and other 

materials needed are a projector, projector screen, speakers, markers, and flipchart paper.

These supply costs may be covered as part of a TTA request.

Instructor Training Consideration

One to two trainers are needed to conduct the training for a certification credit with a 

maximum of 30 participants. An additional instructor is used as support. A minimum of five

participants are needed to fulfill course training requirements.

Adult Mental Health First Aid Action Plan

The MHFA action plan is illustrated below.

How to Request MHFA TTA

After a TTA request is received, Tribal TTA Center staff respond to set up an intake call. From 

there, Tribal TTA Center staff work with the community to best meet their needs. Communities 

can contact the Tribal TTA Center to submit TTA inquiries via:

https://www.samhsa.gov/tribal-ttac/contact-us

Phone: 1-800-953-1379

189 E. Nelson Avenue #249 Wasilla, AK 99654