Betty co-developed the Mental Health First Aid Program with her husband Professor Tony Jorm, and was CEO until 2016.
She has qualifications and experience as a schoolteacher, a counsellor and a registered nurse. She has a Research Masters Degree in Nursing, a Bachelor Degree in Psychology and post graduate qualifications in counselling. She is also an Adjunct Professor at Deakin University in Victoria. She was awarded an OAM in 2008 and an AM in 2015 for her work in Mental Health.
Betty was also listed as one of Australia's 100 Women of Influence in 2008 and 2014, and was listed on the Victorian Honour Roll of Women in 2011.
Research indicates that 1 in 5 people over the age of 16 have a diagnosable mental health illness.
Mental Health First Aid is a 14-hour face-to-face training program where ordinary people learn how to provide initial assistance to someone developing a mental health problem or in a mental health crisis. This program spread across Australia and by 2015, 350,000. people had been trained. The training has been adapted to various cultural groups in Australia, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, Vietnamese and Chinese Australians.
The training program has spread to many other countries, including Bangladesh, Bermuda, Canada, China, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Japan, Malta, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Pakistan, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, the United States and Wales and Betty has delivered many f these programs. Over 3 million persons have been trained in Mental Health First Aid globally.
In 2010, Australian Rotary Health was funded to deliver the MHFA program to Rotary Clubs across Australia, and ARH continues to provide some funding for research.
You have all heard of DRABC for First Aid. MHFA works on the ALGEE protocol:
Teen MHFA is a classroom program for senior students and was developed by current ARH Post-doctoral Fellow Dr Laura Hart of LaTrobe University and University of Melbourne, and former ARH Post-doctoral Fellow Dr Claire Kelly of Mental Health First Aid Australia. 
Some good prompts are available here:
A number of excellent documents and guidelines have been developed about first aid applicable to a range of developing mental disorders and mental health crisis situations.
Due to COVID-19, MHFA is offering a number of online courses to supplement the face to face program.
Find a course or an instructor here:
Thank you Betty.