Don’t be afraid to cover the cost of life coaching or therapy – it’ll make employees happier and more productive in the long run, and guarantees return on investment 

 

Highlights:

• In 2020, only 22% of self-funded individuals booked more than one mental health support session
• In contrast, 61% of business employees booked more than one session last year – engagement is higher when it’s paid for by the company
• Life & executive coaching is the most popular category of support, chosen by 37% of customers – ahead of counselling on 29%
• This shows the limited support offered by EAPs/insurance solutions isn’t sufficient – people want tailored services covering the whole mental health spectrum
• 92% of employees at law firm Dentons saw reduced stress and anxiety after using MYNDUP’s services; 100% saw increased confidence and productivity

Getting mental health support can be expensive if you’re a self-funded individual paying out of your own pocket. However, new data from mental health startup MYNDUP shows workers will take up therapy, counselling or life coaching services in huge numbers if their employer funds it for them. This is the key to better mental wellbeing in the workplace: just a little extra investment goes a very long way.

The data was taken from 3,500 sessions booked with MYNDUP, and shows that engagement with mental health services varies hugely depending on whether customers are self-funded individuals or businesses. For example, only 22% of individuals in 2020 booked more than one session with a qualified practitioner before stopping.

It’s a completely different picture when the booking is done by businesses. A staggering 61% made more than one booking last year, while 31% went on to make at least five bookings.

Joel Gujral, founder and CEO at MYNDUP, said: “These numbers show just how much more accessible mental health support is if it’s offered through work. This makes sense, as employees might struggle to afford long-term support if they’re forced to pay with their own hard-earned cash. Companies can also help their workers find the right support to suit them, which leads to huge benefits both for the business and its workers. For example, 92% of employees at law firm Dentons reported reduced stress and anxiety after using MYNDUP’s services, and 100% saw a boost in confidence and productivity.

“Workplace mental health is talked about a lot these days, which is a great thing, but this data gives us concrete evidence that businesses can and should do more.”

Building on Joel’s point, the data suggests that current company insurance policies and employee assistance programmes (EAPs) still aren’t doing enough to help workers. Looking at 2021 to date, the most popular types of session chosen by users are life & executive coaching – making up 37% of bookings. Counselling – a more traditional type of support – makes up just 29%.

Joel added: “EAPs/insurance solutions have lots of downsides. They lack anonymity and are limited in scope, focusing largely on areas such as therapy and counselling. To add insult to injury, these schemes rarely give people a choice of practitioner, which is a deal-breaker for many.

“Such one-dimensional approaches ignore the fact that mental health is a diverse spectrum: no one person has the same needs or challenges, so it’s foolish to implement a blanket approach and still expect results. In light of this, companies should look at their current offerings and work out whether they cover all the bases.

“Mental health services managed by a third party can be a brilliant choice when building a more holistic support programme for employees. The Dentons project, for example, produced a return on investment of 121% in just two months. Such services are highly flexible and offer a broad range of sessions, giving them a major advantage over EAPs or insurance policies. Crucially, workers also don’t need to spend their own time and money finding something that works for them.”

He concluded: “There’s no single solution to mental health, so it’s vital that companies are bold in their approach. You shouldn’t be afraid to break the mould and think outside the box when it comes to support. Leave the old, inflexible solutions behind, and your employees will thank you for it.”