Universal Mental Health Training

The UMHT Project was implemented by Viktoriia Gorbunova with University of Luxembourg, Zhytomyr State Ivan Franko University and “Mental health for Ukraine Project” (MH4U) implemented by GFA Consulting Group GmbH in collaboration with the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.

The UMHT Project is focused on further development and adjustment of the Universal Mental Health Training (UMHT) for frontline professionals to respond to war-related (posttraumatic stress reactions, including depressed mood, anxiety, adaptational difficulties etc.) and post-war recovery needs in Ukraine. The UMHT is a specialised educational program founded on evidence-based practices. Its main aim is to convey basic mental health knowledge and skills to police officers, emergency responders, social workers, educators, pharmacists, priests, and other professionals who interact daily with people in need of mental health support. UMHT covers the 18 most prevalent mental health disorders throughout lifespan development, which are defined accordingly to DSM-5: depressive disorder, intellectual disability, panic disorder, post-traumatic/acute stress disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, social anxiety disorder, disruptive, impulse-control, and conduct disorders, autism spectrum disorder, delirium, separation anxiety disorder, specific phobias and agoraphobia, illness anxiety disorder, feeding and eating disorders, elimination disorders, sleep-wake disorders, substance-related disorders, gambling disorder, neurocognitive disorders. The training offers a 5-step response model as a standard frame for interaction with people with mental health issues and is suitable for different types of frontline workers. The UMHT steps go one by one as a chain of action (recognize mental health condition, validate a condition with a person, give support, refer for professional help, ensure that professional service is received). The steps and actions are adjusted for every mental condition. All the nuances are highlighted on the appropriate step with the support of the evidence-based recommendation, the primary sources for which were NICE guidelines.

It was funded by Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) in 2023-2024; and developed in 2021 in Ukraine with the support of the Mental Health for Ukraine Project (MH4U).