(FORT WORTH, Texas)—As many colleges and universities prepare to end in-person classes before Thanksgiving, TimelyMD, the leading telehealth provider specializing in higher education, has added a short-term virtual care program to support students’ medical and mental health care needs, no matter where they head home for the holidays.
The Winter Wellness program offers colleges and universities an 8- or 12-week program with access to 24/7 on-demand medical and mental health telehealth visits, as well as scheduled counseling, for students in all 50 states.
With licensed providers in every state, unlimited no-cost visits for students, and branding customized by school, TimelyMD serves as an around-the-clock extension of student health and counseling center resources on more than 60 campuses across the country. Whether students are in crisis, suspect they have a cold, or are concerned about COVID-19 exposure, they can count on TimelyMD to help them in a matter of minutes from the privacy of their own devices.
“Our mission at TimelyMD is to improve the well-being of college students by making virtual medical and mental health care accessible anytime, anywhere,” said CEO and co-founder Luke Hejl. “Unfortunately, this holiday season may be anything but happy for some students, particularly those who will experience unpleasant family situations, financial challenges or housing, food and health care insecurity when they return home. Providing telehealth services over the break enables schools to provide the continuous medical and mental health care students need until the spring semester.”
Innovating to Meet Students’ Most Pressing Needs
The Winter Wellness program is the latest evolution of TimelyMD’s growing menu of customized services, which include medical care, on-demand mental health support (TalkNow), scheduled counseling, psychiatry, health coaching, and SuccessNow, a recent addition that helps faculty and staff support student health. The Campus.Complete, Campus.Health and Campus.Select programs offer long-term, customizable options to meet the needs of any school.
The need for mental health support is particularly pressing for many students. Recent surveys from TimelyMD, Active Minds and NASPA all found consistently high levels of stress and anxiety among students as the pandemic continues. When the coronavirus hit campuses, TimelyMD immediately saw a spike in mental health counseling visits, and since then it has continued to see high utilization rates for teletherapy resources, with mental health visits accounting for more than 60% of all visits compared to 10% prior to COVID-19.
The combination of final exams, family dynamics and Seasonal Affective Disorder already brings increased stress and anxiety to the holiday season. This year, in addition to the pandemic, students are deeply impacted by complex societal issues such as racial and social justice, an economic recession and intense political division. While the nature of student issues isn’t significantly different – still often tied to anxiety, depression or loneliness – underlying societal factors act as triggers and have further enhanced the intensity of their emotions. Unfortunately, about 15% of the students seeking behavioral health support through TimelyMD have expressed some suicidal ideation this semester, compared to about 5% at the end of the summer. Mental health visits were up 32% in October compared to September.
“Only time will tell how significant of a mental health crisis college students are facing,” Hejl said. “Colleges and universities that encourage and provide continual access to mental health support services – through the campus counseling center and trusted telehealth partner – send students a clear message that their safety and well-being truly is a top priority.”
Additional information about the Winter Wellness program can be found at www.timely.md/winterwellness.
About TimelyMD
Focused on improving the health of student populations, TimelyMD offers colleges and universities a comprehensive, custom program centered around telehealth. TimelyMD’s campus-wide solution gives students one point of contact — anytime, anywhere — to get quality care and immediate treatment for medical or mental health concerns from board certified physicians and licensed counselors. TimelyMD’s telehealth programs optimize clinic resources and support clinic staff in delivering quality care to the right students at the right times. Visit timely.md for more information.
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