KUALA LUMPUR, August 9 — Digital mental health platform ThoughtFull has entered a strategic partnership with AIA Malaysia to provide their corporate customers with end-to-end mental health support as part of the AIA Corporate Solutions portfolio.
This marks the first collaboration between a mental health platform and insurance provider within Asia that will empower organisations to support their employees’ mental wellbeing with timely, personalised mental health resources, above and beyond insurance coverage for mental health conditions.
Addressing Long-Standing Gaps In The Region’s Mental Health Coverage
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Covid-19 pandemic triggered a 25 per cent increase in the global prevalence of anxiety and depression in the first year alone.
Despite rising attention to and prioritisation of mental health care globally, with 81 per cent of employees feeling at risk of burnout this year, a survey by Mercer Marsh Benefits has identified a gap between Asian insurers and their global counterparts when it comes to the provision of mental health support, where one in three do not provide mental health coverage as part of their plans.
The pandemic has pushed employee wellbeing to the forefront of employers’ agendas, with 49 per cent of companies implementing changes to their wellbeing programmes in 2020 according to a study by Willis Towers Watson.
However, a gap currently persists in the region with the lack of adequate mental health coverage.
Under this partnership, AIA, one of the largest employee benefits providers in Malaysia, will integrate ThoughtFull’s end-to-end mental health care capabilities into its Corporate Solutions portfolio.
Together, both ThoughtFull and AIA will deliver improved stress, anxiety and depression management to corporate policyholders and their employees, unlocking new avenues for users to proactively engage with their mental health.
The first-in-market Mental Health Solution enables employers to provide better care and end-to-end support for their employees’ mental wellbeing.
The new Mental Health Solution is part of WorkWell with AIA, a proposition under the insurer’s Total Corporate Solutions. WorkWell with AIA offers a suite of solutions and services that provides guidance to organisations who are seeking to nurture and improve their employees’ wellbeing.
The Mental Health Solution comes with two distinct features:
1. Digital Access To Mental Wellness
- Unlimited one-on-one access to professional mental wellness coaches for daily bite-sized coaching.
- Self-guided learning content and wellness tracker.
- Mental wellness programmes, webinars, and workshops.
- 24/7 Wellness Hotline for crisis interventions.
2. Coverage For Mental Health Benefit
- Covers employees for consultations, medication, and treatment cost provided by a psychiatrist and/or a physician due to a mental health condition.
- Includes coverage for the employees’ dependents.
- Offers cashless or reimbursement options.
Employees covered by the Mental Health Solution will be able to access unlimited 1-on-1 daily coaching with a certified mental wellness professional, track their levels of stress, anxiety and depression in real time, read science-backed digital content and use mood trackers and guided thought journals via the ThoughtFull app.
“Physical health and illnesses have traditionally been widely covered by insurance but the same can’t be said for mental health and illnesses in this region. This coverage gap, and consequently, the inherent costs of seeking mental health and well-being services have been a barrier to access for many,” said Joan Low, founder and chief executive officer of ThoughtFull.
“ThoughtFull is thus thrilled to partner with AIA, who has always been at the forefront of innovation, to address these mental health coverage gaps in the region and make end-to-end care even more accessible to all,” added Low.
With evidence-based frameworks focusing on the spectrum of preventive to crisis support, the partnership will tap into ThoughtFull’s existing expertise in organisational wellbeing. ThoughtFull will provide seamless access to digital end-to-end mental health support, facilitating mental health care anytime, anywhere.
“We have long been advocates of the importance of mental health in the workplace and we believe that it should be given just as much priority as we do to physical health. Which is why we are really excited to partner with ThoughtFull to bring new and innovative mental health services to our corporate clients and their employees, under our WorkWell with AIA proposition,” said Tung Hsiao Ley, chief corporate solutions officer of AIA Bhd.
“Our decision to work with ThoughtFull was an easy one. Having experienced their services ourselves since the start of the pandemic, we saw first-hand the benefits that they had brought to our own employees through their genuine and seamless approach. As one of the country’s largest employee benefits providers, we are optimistic of the positive change this partnership will bring to our ongoing efforts of enabling a healthier, happier and more productive workforce in Malaysia,” Tung explained.
“We’re seeing more and more members of the workforce struggle with mental wellness, which has been exacerbated by the pandemic. It is detrimental not only to the individual’s emotional wellbeing, but also to the nation’s productivity. Organisations who are looking to foster a healthy and happy environment for their employees while staying ahead of their competition would have to play a more active role in addressing mental health issues at the workplace,” added Tung.
