Approved Mental Health Professional Qualification Training Stage 1 - Adult Social Care training and development

Course aims: 

Stage 1 (Selection and Preparation) consists of Module 1:

- Preparing for Approved Mental Health Professional Practice (20 credits).

This module is designed to ensure candidates have a full understanding of and familiarity with the AMHP practice and the responsibilities entailed to enable them to benefit fully from the AMHP Qualifying Training Programme.

Candidates are required to:

Evaluate interventions in mental health demonstrating a critical analysis of the implications of different models of mental health and mental disorder for the services provided to service users and particularly the use made of compulsion

Critically analyse the role of risk assessment and management when acting as an AMHP

Critically analyse the power imbalances inherent when acting as an AMHP and the strategies AMHPs can employ to ameliorate the impact of those imbalances

Critically evaluate the differences in roles and responsibilities between an AMHP and undertaking other aspects of post-qualifying mental health work

Assessment is by a written analysis of a Mental Health Act Assessment taking place in the community in which the candidate's role is a shadowing one. This written piece of work should be between 5000 and 7000 words and must link theory to practice. The analysis must be counter‑signed to indicate that Practice Mentor/Assessor agrees that it demonstrates the competences claimed.

Course length

Five full days at University with a mixture of knowledge and skills development.

Release to attend a minimum of one day a month in the AMHP Hub

Plus, additional release for supervision, attendance at AMHP continuing professional development, attendance at the AMHP Forum,

Plus, additional release for completion of portfolio (4 days), additional release for shadowing assessments and evidence and experience gathering (5 days).