For skeptical employees, digital tools are a painless intro to mental health care

How's your mental health? 

Most of us can answer that question based on a general understanding of how we feel during the day. But in terms of a clinical assessment? We're flying blind. 

"Human potential centers on mental health," says Dr. Oliver Harrison, CEO of digital mental health platform Koa Health. In addition to helping employers deliver support to their employees, the company aims to help all users understand their baseline mental health — something that can guide care options and solutions for employers and employees alike, Dr. Harrison says. "Helping people understand where they are on the [mental health] spectrum and making sure those different forms of support are available at scale for a workforce is the right thing to do for people who support your business." 

Koa identifies where someone is on their mental health journey via a short, private digital assessment, then gives them a "mental health number" and points them toward recommended resources that range from education materials, preventive care and expert-approved self-care, all the way to clinical services. 

Read more:  For employees battling anxiety, return to office mandates are a mental health issue

A study by One Medical found that 64% of workers are struggling with a range of mental health issues. Even if employees don't feel they fall into this category, everyone can improve their mental health, says Dr. Harrison. Digital health solutions can be a necessary first step toward care — regional access to in-person therapists is no longer an issue, and concerns around stigma dissipate when support is available via a screen. 

Providing this easy entrypoint can yield significant benefits for businesses: Those suffering from mental wellness challenges are four times more likely to leave their jobs as those who are not, according to a recent report from McKinsey. 

"The brain creates the source of our creativity, our ability to form relationships, our ability to process information, make decisions, get stuff done," Dr. Harrison says. "There's a really strong moral case for allowing people to fulfill their human potential, but there's also a strong business case. Companies need as many people being creative and productive as possible in order to perform. And yet, we have failed to get on top of this."

Read more:  'I needed her to get better': This working mom used virtual care to battle her daughter's eating disorder

For employees who are fortunate enough to have access to mental health benefits, 68% say they don't use these employer-provided options because access was time-consuming and confusing, according to Deloitte. Easy-to-use digital tools can remove some of that friction, and get employees on a path toward trusting available resources. 

Dr. Harrison reminds employers to prioritize confidentiality and advocacy. Employees throughout the organization can be powerful voices for mental health, and these "informal leaders" should be identified by teams and empowered with knowledge so they can be effective guides to their coworkers and, along with all other efforts, keep the topic from fading into the background in the workplace, he says. 

"Mental health symptoms — nights where you can't sleep, anxious thoughts, fears for yourself and for the health of your loved ones — everyone has these experiences," he says. "For business leaders to talk about their own experiences is very permissioning for people across the team. Explain why it's important we all proactively lean into looking after our own mental health. If we can start those conversations locally within our immediate groups, they quickly propagate across the entire organization."