Westerly — The Westerly Hospital, in partnership with Washington County Coalition for Children, will offer a free, two-part certification training course on Youth Mental Health First Aid on April 23 and April 30 in the hospital’s Henry J. Nardone Conference Center.

Similar to other first aid/CPR courses, participants who successfully complete the course will be certified in Youth Mental Health First Aid. Certification will be valid for 3 years.

This two-part, 8-hour certification course will be taught from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on both Saturdays.

The course will be led by Dr. Robert Harrison and Susan Orban, coordinator for the coalition, both of whom are certified in youth mental health first aid training.

Youth Mental Health First Aid is a mental health literacy program designed to teach adults a five-step action plan to offer initial help to young people facing mental health challenges or in crisis situations, as well as connect them with the appropriate services.

This free course is designed for adults who work with young people, ages 12 to 18, including teachers, coaches, leaders of faith communities, police officers, youth group leaders and parents. The interactive curriculum teaches participants the risk factors and warning signs of a variety of mental health challenges common among adolescents, including anxiety, depression, psychosis, eating disorders, AD/HD, disruptive behavior disorders and substance use disorders.

Participation is free. Space is limited to 25 participants. To register, contact Dr. Harrison at: rharrison@westerlyhospital.org or at: (401) 316-4134.

For information, visit www.MentalHealthFirstAid.org.

This training is made possible through a federal grant.