In recent years, advancements in technology have led to the development and cost-effective delivery of sophisticated digital mental-health programs, with burgeoning resources for common mental-health problems. Today, a Google search for ‘digital therapies for anxiety’ yields more than 67 million results, while ‘digital therapies for depression’ brings up more than 80 million results, said Dr. […]
Over the last 40 years, the mortality morbidities of cancer, HIV and cardiovascular disease have dropped dramatically, but the mortality of suicide has gone up, according to Dr. Sam Ozersky, president and chief executive officer of FeelingBetterNow. “Ten people per day, mostly from the ages of 15 to 25, die from suicide,” he said during […]
Internet-based programs are the future of mental-health therapy, according to Peter Gove, the former innovation leader in health management at Green Shield Canada, speaking during a session at Benefits Canada’s 2019 Toronto Mental Health Summit on Nov. 29. “Cognitive behavioural therapy is probably the most adaptable therapy to a digital environment because it’s very manualized — you […]
Looking ahead to 2020, the big story for health benefits is often avoided because it isn’t easy to address. It’s the elephant in the room. Over the past year, there’s been no shortage of momentum in new and emerging product offerings in the health benefits space — everything from digital cognitive behavioural therapy to virtual […]
Shoppers Drug Mart is partnering with SilverCloud Health Ltd. to make the digital mental-health solutions company’s online cognitive behavioural therapy program available to Canadian plan sponsors. SilverCloud’s digital CBT offering includes behavioural-health coaching support for depression and anxiety from trained social workers, as well as self-help programs on stress management and resiliency. “As the exclusive Canadian partner […]
SSQ Life Insurance Co. Inc. is partnering with Haleo and MindBeacon Software Inc. to offer digital cognitive behavioural therapy to group insurance plan members. Both companies offer online CBT, with Haleo’s tool focusing on sleep disorders and MindBeacon’s option directed at mild to moderate anxiety and depression symptoms. The partnerships are part of a broader digital health strategy, according to the insurer, which is aiming to […]
With more than 1,400 mental-health apps available for download, and more entering the marketplace every day, are these tools an effective way for employers to support employee well-being? The journal Nature Digital Medicine, which estimated the number above, also found only 2.6 per cent of apps that are clinically relevant specifically for depression provided evidence […]
Half (51 per cent) of plan sponsors said they have a mental-health training program in place for managers and/or employees, up from 37 per cent in 2018, according to the 2019 Sanofi Canada health-care survey. The prevalence of mental-health training is even higher among plan sponsors with 500 or more staff (73 per cent), as well as unionized […]
On May 24, the 2019 Vancouver Benefits Summit focused on how employers can make their organization its healthiest by starting with their benefits plans. Here’s what you missed! Panel: Should drug coverage for certain conditions still be optional? In many workplace drug plans, medications that treat certain conditions remain in the optional life category, but is […]
Everyone is talking about cognitive behavioural therapy, but do most people understand it? It’s important for plan sponsors to fully understand what they’re paying for when they decide to provide mental-health benefits, said Peter Gove, innovation leader in health management at Green Shield Canada, in a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2019 Vancouver Benefits Summit at the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel […]