The Umbrella Project—The Impact of Education on Staff Knowledge, Attitudes and Confidence in Caring for Mental Health Patients Within the Emergency Department

To evaluate the impact of a structured mental health education program on emergency department nurses' knowledge, attitudes and confidence in caring for people experiencing mental health distress. Mental health presentations to emergency departments continue to increase, placing greater responsibility on emergency nurses to provide safe, compassionate and evidence-based care. Despite this, many nurses report feeling underprepared to assess and manage mental health presentations due to limited education and training. Emergency department nurses completed anonymous pre-training, post-training and 3-month follow-up surveys measuring self-reported knowledge, attitudes and confidence. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and qualitative responses using reflexive thematic analysis. Eight nurses completed the pre- and post-training surveys, with four completing the 3-month follow-up. Knowledge and confidence improved across all domains immediately following education, with the greatest gains in trauma-informed care, mental health legislation, suicide-related communication and management of complex behaviours. Positive attitudes towards mental health care remained consistently high, while qualitative findings demonstrated perceived improvements in clinical practice. A targeted mental health education program improved emergency nurses' perceived knowledge, confidence and application of key mental health care principles. These findings support the integration of targeted mental health education into emergency nursing professional development to strengthen workforce capability and improve care for people presenting with mental health concerns.