Quality in Primary Care

Abstract

Effectiveness of mental health education for high school teachers in Japan: A prospective cohort study

Junichi Fujita*, Tsukasa Sasaki, Hidehito Miyazaki, Yusuke Saigusa, Noriko Mochida, Kumi Aoyama, Yuichi Takahashi, Chiaki Hironai, Kyohei Yamamoto, Nao Toyohara, Noriaki Nakamura and Akitoyo Hishimoto

Background: There is a growing demand for mental health literacy in Japanese schools, necessitating educational programs tailored to teachers with insufficient knowledge of mental health.
Aim: This study evaluated the effectiveness of a mental health educational program for high school teachers in enhancing their understanding of student mental health.
Methods: We conducted a single-arm interventional study between 2018 and 2019, evaluating high school teachers’ awareness of student mental health before and after participating in a mental health educational program, covering four themes: Suicidal behaviors, behavioral problems associated with developmental disabilities, school absenteeism/ social withdrawal, and violent behaviors. Using a mixed-effects linear regression analysis of 130 samples, we assessed the program’s effectiveness.
Results: Analysis revealed a significant improvement in mental health knowledge, with an average increase of 1.6 points (9.6% from the pretest average score) on a 24-point scale (95% CI=0.3-3.1, p<0.02). Notably, knowledge of suicidal behaviors showed sustained improvement even after 1 year.
Conclusion: The results indicated that the program can enhance educators’ knowledge, particularly in understanding suicidal behaviors.

Published Date: 2024-06-18; Received Date: 2024-05-21