Psychological First Aid for Social Care Workers

Psychological First Aid (PFA) is highly relevant for social care workers due to the nature of their roles, which often involve supporting individuals experiencing crises, trauma, or emotional distress. Social care workers are frequently the first point of contact for vulnerable individuals, and PFA equips them to offer immediate emotional and psychological support. This timely intervention helps prevent distress from escalating into long-term mental health problems, such as anxiety or depression.

PFA aligns with a person-centered, trauma-informed approach, which, essential in social care. It enables workers to respond with empathy, ensuring that service users feel heard, respected, and safe—key factors in building trust and promoting recovery. By addressing both emotional and practical needs in the moment, PFA fosters resilience and coping strategies among service users.

Additionally, the training is crucial in reducing the risk of re-traumatisation, particularly when working with individuals who have experienced complex trauma. Social care workers trained in PFA will be better equipped to handle high-stress situations, which reduces burnout and increases their ability to provide sustained, high-quality care. As a result, PFA not only benefits service users by enhancing emotional well-being but also supports social care workers in maintaining their own mental health and resilience.

Who is this training suitable for: Frontline social care workers and supervisors, students, or anyone interested in learning about Psychological First Aid. 

This highly interactive training, during which participants will:

• Understand what psychological first aid is and is not
• Understand key theory of psychosocial support
• Understand the common and uncommon reactions to distress and trauma and when to seek further help
• Know when, where and how to use psychological first aid
• Learn the key action principles of PFA.
• Engage in firsthand practice of PFA through role play
• Reflect on the application of the principles of PFA to our workplace, service users/peers and our wider communities

The practice of PFA is consistent with the SCWRB Code of Professional Conduct and ethics. In particular, it assists practitioners to assess health, safety and welfare risks, assists practitioners to support colleagues in addition to those they serve, there is a strong element of ethical awareness, and the upholding of human rights and promotion of social justice in practice. There is also an element of maintaining the practitioners own psychological health.

This training is endorsed by Social Care Ireland. You can attribute up to 3 CPD points to this training.

Training Host: This training is being run by Audrey Moore from Trust Social Care Consultancy. Audrey has qualifications in Psychology, Social Care, leadership and clinical supervision and has worked in a variety of social care settings since 2002.

Cancellations are eligible for a full refund if made at least one week before the training date. No refunds will be issued for cancellations made within one week of the event or for non attendance.