FIFO workers are, by the nature of the sectors they work in, based in remote locations. This can influence their emotional wellbeing since they are away from home, their families and usual support systems for extended periods of time.

The rural locations in which they work can also mean that they are far away from specialised health services — in particular, mental health support. This makes learning how to identify mental health issues and help people affected by them very important.

First Aid for Mental Health is essential because:

• FIFO workers are based in isolated locations where access to mental health services may be limited. Most are based in Western Australia, which is considered a very remote area of the country.
• A study that assessed the wellbeing of FIFO workers found that 33% of them experienced high or very high psychological distress.
• Another research project that looked at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on FIFO workers found that high or very high psychological distress affected 41% of this group.