An estimated wenty percent of youth are diagnosed with a mental-health disorder..

To help address the widespread issue, community members in the Monadnock region from all walks of life successfully completed a three-day training course presented by Mental Health First Aid USA. The training took place from Sept. 26-Sept. 28.

The course, which was hosted at Keene State College, was directed at teaching laypeople how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses in youth.

Dennis Calcutt, project manager for the Monadnock System of Care grant, said a recent survey showed people in the Monadnock region only have a “vague awareness” of mental health issues.

“There are three reasons this type of training course is important,” Calcutt said. “First, it provides people with the skills to address these issues better. The second reason is that it builds capacity to train people, and the third is that it raises awareness about mental-health issues.”

Calcutt said first responders, teachers, guidance counselors and family members were among those in attendance.

“We really had a nice, diverse group of people who brought with them a lot of different perspectives,” he said.

Those who obtained the certification can now teach an 8-hour course to disseminate the information to other community members and colleagues.

Cari Christian-Coates, assistant director for student services ConVal Regional School District, said four professionals from the school district attended the training last week.

“If you look at the state level, and then the region, there is simply not enough resources and support for mental-health issues,” said Christian-Coates.

She said there is a deficit of resources here.

The course was especially important for professionals at the school who deal with youth every day, she said.

“Say you have a student who is depressed, they are down and they have their head on their desk. Our hope would be that adults have the skills to intervene,” Christian-Coates said.

ConVal has not yet decided how it will implement the training program, although Christian-Coates said the material has to be presented within six months of the course completion date.

The training was funded through a Project AWARE grant, which is aimed at improving behavioral health awareness among school-age youth and their communities.

The event was supported by the Monadnock Region System of Care grant.

Abby Kessler can be reached at 924-7172, ext. 234.