SANTA BARBARA COUNTY — Family Service Agency (FSA) of Santa Barbara County and Youthwell are pleased to announce a new slate of suicide prevention workshops called QPR that will teach participants three steps to help save a life from suicide. Last year, over 580 Santa Barbara County residents received this free, two-hour training.
SANTA BARBARA — Family Service Agency (FSA) of Santa Barbara County and Youthwell are pleased to announce a free mental health training called QPR that will help participants learn three steps to help save a life from suicide.
QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer — the three simple steps anyone can learn. Just as people trained in CPR help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis. In the two-hour course, participants will learn to recognize the warning signs of suicide, how to offer hope, and how to get help and save a life.
In response to our nation’s mental health crisis, Family Service Agency (FSA), Mental Wellness Center (MWC), and Youthwell have secured funding that will continue to bring Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) trainings to Santa Barbara County. In the next five years, the coalition expects to train 2,800 adults to recognize the signs and symptoms of mental health challenges in youth, provide initial response, and safely connect youth with appropriate services. The funding also includes training 2,000 high school students to recognize and respond to the signs of mental health issues in their peers.
Virtual YMHFA classes start this February and are offered at no cost to Santa Barbara County adults thanks to funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Since the pandemic started, experts have warned of a mental health crisis facing American children. That is now playing out at schools across the nation—and in Santa Barbara County—in the form of increased childhood depression, anxiety, panic attacks, eating disorders, fights and thoughts of suicide.
“The pandemic has dramatically increased depression and anxiety in youth,” said Megan McClintock, Director of School Based Counseling Services for Family Service Agency (FSA). “Our organization is certainly seeing more referrals for treatment as well as an increase in severity.”
SANTA BARBARA — Youth Mental Health First Aid is a comprehensive training specifically designed to equip educators, family members, and caregivers with the skills and knowledge to identify, understand, and respond to the signs or risk factors of mental illness…
SANTA BARBARA — Youth Mental Health First Aid is a comprehensive training specifically designed to equip educators, family members, and caregivers with the skills and knowledge to identify, understand, and respond to the signs or risk factors of mental illness…
SANTA BARBARA — Youth Mental Health First Aid is a comprehensive training specifically designed to equip educators, family members, and caregivers with the skills and knowledge to identify, understand, and respond to the signs or risk factors of mental illness…
SANTA BARBARA — Youth Mental Health First Aid is a comprehensive training specifically designed to equip educators, family members, and caregivers with the skills and knowledge to identify, understand, and respond to the signs or risk factors of mental illness…
