CHC hosts first “Mental Health First Aid” training with MHMR of Tarrant County

My Health My Resources (MHMR) of Tarrant County hosted the first of what will be many training classes of Mental Health First Aid curriculum to attendees yesterday at its offices in Fort Worth.

MHMR of Tarrant County is a partner of the North Texas Community Health Collaborative (CHC) which has taken on the ambitious goal of improving the behavioral health needs of the region.

Coordinated by the DFW Hospital Council (DFWHC) Foundation, the CHC represents 11 area health systems with a strategic goal of improving mental health services over the next three years. One of the goals of the collaborative was to train more than 10,000 lay-people in the national Mental Health First Aid curriculum throughout the region.

“This is just the beginning,” said Dr. Sushma Sharma, the director of public and population health research at the DFWHC Foundation. “Our goals are to identify the behavioral health trends of our community and to provide resources for our stakeholders to make informed decisions to improve the behavioral health of residents.”

The eight complimentary hours of training were sponsored by MHMR of Tarrant county with more than 15 attendees participating.

Lisa Boone of MHMR of Tarrant County and Ashley Rodriguez of Baylor Scott and White Health coordinated the event as representatives of the CHC. The collaborative will host a meeting on January 9 to present findings from its Regional Behavioral Health Needs Assessment of the community.