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Teachers as first responders: classroom experiences and mental health training needs of Australian schoolteachers.
Gunawardena, Harshi; Leontini, Rose; Nair, Sham; Cross, Shane; Hickie, Ian.
Afiliación
  • Gunawardena H; University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia. harshi.gunawardena@sydney.edu.au.
  • Leontini R; The University of New South Wales, Kensington, Australia.
  • Nair S; Department of Education, New South Wales, Australia.
  • Cross S; Orygen, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.
  • Hickie I; University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
BMC Public Health ; 24(1): 268, 2024 01 23.
Article en En | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38263048
ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND:

Schoolteachers are often the first to respond when a student presents with a mental health issue in the classroom. This places a burden on schools that impacts school staff, healthcare workers and teachers. More broadly, it places a responsibility on the education system to address students' mental health. This study examines Australian teachers' classroom experiences and the training areas identified by teachers as necessary to manage these issues.

METHOD:

Interviews were undertaken with 18 in-service teachers between 2020 and 2021 from Catholic, Independent and Public schools. Data were gathered via multiple interviews and analysed using thematic content analysis.

RESULTS:

The major mental health issues identified by teachers related to mental disorders, depression, anxiety, and a complex range of negative emotional states. Teachers requested training in child and adolescent mental health, counselling skills, early detection and intervention, and training skills to manage the complex relationship with parents and external health and community personnel. Teachers also reported the need to access mental health resources, support and training, which were differentially accessed along socioeconomic status and postcodes.

CONCLUSION:

The data show that teachers are often placed as first responders when a student has a mental health issue but feel inadequately trained to manage these issues in the classroom. We identified mental health issues presenting in Australian classrooms and documented critical features of mental-health training asked for by teachers in order to address those issues. Given the increasing demands on teachers to address the mental health of children and adolescents, we argue that an urgent review of mental health training for teachers is needed.
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Texto completo: 1 Colección: 01-internacional Base de datos: MEDLINE Asunto principal: Socorristas / Trastornos Mentales Tipo de estudio: Diagnostic_studies / Screening_studies Límite: Adolescent / Child / Humans País/Región como asunto: Oceania Idioma: En Revista: BMC Public Health Asunto de la revista: SAUDE PUBLICA Año: 2024 Tipo del documento: Article País de afiliación: Australia Pais de publicación: Reino Unido
Texto completo
Añadir a Mi BVS
Imprimir
XML
PubMed Links
Buscar en Google

Texto completo: 1 Colección: 01-internacional Base de datos: MEDLINE Asunto principal: Socorristas / Trastornos Mentales Tipo de estudio: Diagnostic_studies / Screening_studies Límite: Adolescent / Child / Humans País/Región como asunto: Oceania Idioma: En Revista: BMC Public Health Asunto de la revista: SAUDE PUBLICA Año: 2024 Tipo del documento: Article País de afiliación: Australia Pais de publicación: Reino Unido