MyCHN is excited to announce our newest collaborative effort to provide essential quality care to our patients. We have just finalized a partnership with Wysa, an AI-powered mental health app offering cognitive behavioral counseling techniques, meditation, yoga, and guided journaling activities. It is designed to help people experiencing low mood, stress, or anxiety or who are interested in improving their emotional resilience.
Why did we elect to add this service to our system of care? We are committed to a future focused on improving the well-being of the communities we serve, and we know that our mental health directly impacts our well-being. The impact of mental health across America is staggering.
Key figures from the 2023 Study conducted by Mental Health America found the following:
- In 2019-2020, 20.78% of adults were experiencing a mental illness. That is equivalent to over 50 million Americans.
- The vast majority of individuals with a substance use disorder in the U.S. are not receiving treatment. 15.35% of adults had a substance use disorder in the past year. Of them, 93.5% did not receive any form of treatment.
- Millions of adults in the U.S. experience serious thoughts of suicide, with the highest rate among multiracial individuals. The percentage of adults reporting serious thoughts of suicide is 4.84%, totaling over 12.1 million individuals.
- Over 1 in 10 youth in the U.S. are experiencing depression that is severely impairing their ability to function at school or work, at home, with family, or in their social life. 16.39% of youth (age 12-17) report suffering from at least one major depressive episode in the past year. 11.5% of youth (over 2.7 million youth) are experiencing severe major depression.
- Over half (54.7%) of adults with a mental illness do not receive treatment, totaling over 28 million individuals.
- Almost a third (28.2%) of all adults with a mental illness reported that they were not able to receive the treatment they needed. 42% of adults with any mental illness reported they were unable to receive necessary care because they could not afford it.
- 6.34% of youth in the U.S. reported a substance use disorder in the past year. That is equivalent to over 1.5 million youth in the U.S. who meet the criteria for an illicit drug or alcohol use disorder.
- Nationally, only 28% of youth with severe depression receive some consistent treatment (7-25+ visits in a year). Most (57.3%) youth with severe depression do not receive any care.
Fulfilling the Need
The need and demand for mental health services are tremendous, and there are not enough resources available to meet the needs of the people we serve. As demonstrated, the cost to access care is beyond the capabilities of many Americans. Our solutions cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach. We need to provide access to care and assistance where we can find opportunities. With this in mind, MyCHN has identified a best-in-class partner that gives us an AI-generative solution.
Wysa is an AI-powered mental health app that offers cognitive behavioral counseling, meditation, yoga, and guided journaling activities. It is designed to help people experiencing low mood, stress, or anxiety or people who are interested in improving their emotional resilience. We are introducing this collaboration on two levels. First, we have made the app available to our staff members to provide them with tools to address behavioral health concerns, and second, we are making this product available to a select group of our patients for whom we provide care.
Wysa is an AI-powered mental health app that offers cognitive behavioral counseling, meditation, yoga, and guided journaling activities. It is designed to help people experiencing low mood, stress, or anxiety or people who are interested in improving their emotional resilience. We are introducing this collaboration on two levels. First, we have made the app available to our staff members to provide them with tools to address behavioral health concerns, and second, we are making this product available to a select group of our patients for whom we provide care.
We anticipate that after this pilot project, we will offer this solution to a broader group of the people we serve, including options for employers to make Wysa, and MyCHN therapy and medication management available to their employees. MyCHN is working to create a care model that can address the mental health needs of most people we serve. It may begin with just needing a digital app, such as Wysa, to provide counseling and interventions, followed by a digital app with virtual therapy with one of our therapists, or it could be a combination of these with face-to-face therapy and medication management with our primary care providers or our psychiatric providers. Our pharmacies, located in most MyCHN clinics, support our medication management, which can provide advanced, high-quality medications at significantly reduced prices.
MyCHN is working to provide a continuum of care for people needing behavioral health services. These services are tailored to the needs of the patient.
Mark Young, CEO
Mark Young has worked in health services since 1989 and community health since 1998. He holds a Master of Organization Management degree and a Master of Business Administration degree. Over his career, Mr. Young has worked on initiatives in the Rio Grande Valley, northeast Texas, and south Texas. He developed several projects: outreach and engagement with Colonia residents, residential treatment services for pregnant women and children, and public education. Created a tuberculosis intervention program, multiple chemical and alcohol dependency programs, and mental health programs. Since 2010, he has served as the CEO of MyCHN, with clinic locations in Brazoria, Galveston, and Harris Counties. Mr. Young and MyCHN’s focus extends all life cycles from newborn to geriatrics, with a new emphasis on elder care and hospice.
