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CV NEWS FEED // The Diocese of Phoenix is taking steps to bolster its mental health outreach by training a new group of laypersons as certified instructors in Mental Health First Aid (MHFA).
Sixteen lay individuals, each representing a deanery in the Diocese, will complete a three-day training program led by experts from the national MHFA organization, according to the Diocese’s official news source, The Catholic Sun.
The MHFA program, which was originally developed in Australia and introduced to the U.S., educates participants to recognize signs of issues such as depression, mood disorders, anxiety, trauma, and psychosis. Participants learn strategies for assisting people with those challenges.
The Catholic Sun reported that this development is part of an ongoing effort to provide resources and support to people at its 94 parishes who are struggling with mental health.
Mental Health Ministry Office Director Mary Permoda shared that previously, the Diocese could only train a limited number of individuals at its pastoral center in downtown Phoenix, which created a bottleneck for the growing demand. The addition of lay trainers will enable the Diocese to streamline the process of training members in all of its parishes.
“The goal is to have one trainer responsible for each deanery, so they can train people within that deanery,” Permoda stated, according to the report.
Mental Health Ministry Education Program Manager Maricela Campa shared that the 16 new trainees are not clinical experts, but “individuals who want to serve and learn how to have better conversations to accompany somebody else.”
Campa continued, “For a lot of them, it was an inclination to help somebody and a desire to ensure our community has this information.”
“It’s information we want everyone to have access to,” she said. “It does save lives.”
The report shared that Bishop of Phoenix John P. Dolan, who experienced the tragic loss of several family members to suicide, has been a strong advocate for expanding mental health awareness and resources in the Catholic community.
Shortly after becoming bishop in 2022, he introduced a comprehensive diocesan plan to support those suffering by providing strong connections to resources, education, accompaniment, and advocacy for better policies and funding.
