Evaluation of mental health training for community pharmacy staff members and consumers

Abstract

Background: Community pharmacy staff in rural and remote areas need to have the skills to recognise mental health signs and symptoms, provide support and appropriate advice. Aims: To evaluate the impact of Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training through collaborative sessions attended by pharmacy staff and community members. Methods: Pharmacy staff, alongside members of the local farming community, attended collaborative MHFA training in four Queensland towns. This study evaluated the training through pre-and post-training questionnaires and email feedback following practice application of skills. Results: Thirty-two pharmacy staff and 14 community members participated in both pre-and post-questionnaires; 10 males and 36 females varying in age between 18 and 65 with the majority (26, 72.2%) aged 30-49 years. Participants' understanding of the need to ask a person directly about suicide changed significantly through the training. The pre-and post-course surveys demonstrated a difference in knowledge of both the consumers and pharmacy staff members. Community members' perception about how pharmacy staff can assist with mental health issues changed significantly and pharmacy staff reported an increase in confidence to approach consumers regarding their mental health. Qualitative feedback from consumers and pharmacy staff 8-12 weeks following the training was positive. Conclusion: Pharmacy staff members are well placed to provide mental health support to farming communities. A collaborative mental health training approach in rural and remote areas that involved pharmacy staff and local community members showed improved knowledge, skills and collaboration between staff and consumers. This approach could easily be adapted to other contexts.

A Scoping Review of Suicide Prevention Training Programs for Pharmacists and Student Pharmacists

“…One targeted community pharmacists, pharmacy assistants (ie, those who dispense under the supervision of a pharmacist), and members of four local farming communities in Queensland, Australia. 32 The second targeted lay people, pharmacists, general practitioners, and patients, including survivors of suicide attempt in Germany, Hungary, Portugal, and Ireland 33 (Table 1). Two of the five student pharmacist suicide prevention gatekeeper programs were embedded in Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training programs (40%), but the content and assessments were different.…”

“…31 Two of the six studies provided written case scenarios in which participants gave written feedback based on a hypothetical patient with suicidal warning signs (33%). 28,32 All five trainings for student pharmacists contained a role play or interactive component. Three (60%) contained background information and statistics on suicide [27][28][29] and two addressed medication counseling (40%) one addressed risk of medication use in a suicide attempt 28 and the other provided a scenario of a medication related ethical dilemma and review of medication history.…”

“…One program addressed how to communicate about and ask about suicide and included an interactive case scenario with brief hypothetical response options. 32 Three of the seven programs conducted pre-and post-training assessments (43%). The most common outcomes measured included changes in knowledge (57%) and perceived relevancy of training to pharmacy/pharmacy staff (57%).…”

Development of a Positive Psychology Well-Being Intervention in a Community Pharmacy Setting

“…They reported that developing and maintaining good relationships with patients was one of the most important factors for its successful implementation. Shams and Hattingh [ 14 ] evaluated the impact of the MHFA training across four towns in Australia. Community pharmacists reported having a better understanding of mental health issues, recognising the signs and symptoms earlier and felt more confident engaging in mental health conversations [ 14 ].…”

“…Shams and Hattingh [ 14 ] evaluated the impact of the MHFA training across four towns in Australia. Community pharmacists reported having a better understanding of mental health issues, recognising the signs and symptoms earlier and felt more confident engaging in mental health conversations [ 14 ]. This highlights the potential for community pharmacies to play an important role in providing mental health support.…”