Background:
Working in high-pressure, fast-paced corporate environments has both its benefits and its challenges.  Mental health and wellbeing can be put at risk by the long hours, high stress levels and demanding nature of the job.  Access to urgent mental healthcare with a high-quality professional in Hong Kong is poor.  In addition, individuals who start to struggle with their mental health often do not know where to go for support.  This can mean that the situation deteriorates before they are able to find treatment, and a mental health crisis may occur.

As responsible medical providers, Central Health has created a solution which we believe is the best and safest response to Hong Kong’s lack of acute mental health services: The Mental Health Safety Net.  By facilitating prompt access to the full range of mental health professionals within 24 to 72 hrs, we hope to prevent as many patients as possible from reaching crisis point, ensuring they retain choices about how best to manage their mental health. We recognise that mental health support is often not well provided for by many insurance companies so we have worked to make our service confidential, transparent, evidence based, and carefully audited for quality assurance. We hope that banks and the law firms involved in high stress areas of financial services and their insurance companies will be able to feel confident about funding the service.

The Mental Health Safety Net consists of 4 components:

1. Direct access to psychologist for extended hours support and triage
Subscribers to the Safety Net can email a dedicated contact, and will receive a call back within one hour directly from either a psychologist or experienced family doctor.  Tailored support and advice will be provided, and an urgent appointment booked as necessary.  Subscribers do not need to inform their work/EAP to access the triage.

2. Urgent Appointment with psychiatrist or specialist psychologist/counsellor
Central Health Medical Practice has partnered with a further three clinics to gain access to Hong Kong’s premier mental health clinicians.  These individuals do not normally have availability to take urgent new referrals.  If clinically indicated, subscribers to the Safety Net will be triaged to a psychiatry appointment within 24 hours and/or to a psychologist or counsellor with relevant specialism within 2-3 days.

3. Care Plan and Follow-Up
Management of mental health should be comprehensive to ensure best outcomes.  Every urgent appointment will include the creation of an Individualised Care Plan, which will be followed by involved professionals.  Our Safety Net staff will be available to follow up and help with further support throughout the duration of the Care Plan.

4. Corporate Supports
To ensure that the Safety Net is well-utilised, and to improve general workplace mental
Health, Central Health Medical Practice can also offer in-house mental health support, consultancy and training to subscribing organisations.  HR and management can contact the triage line for advice in urgent mental health situations.

Availability:
This service will operate 8.30am to 10pm Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5.30pm Saturday, and 10 am to 2pm Sunday/Public Holiday. It will initially be available only for adults (18+).  It will be accessed by an annual subscription, available only via workplace/insurer.  There will be options for (adult) family members and packages of mental health care included in pricings.
If this service works well we will look at ways of including mental health support for children aged 12 to 18.

Your thoughts:
We would like to hear your comments and feedback on this service, as we adapt it to ensure that it meets our patients’ needs.  All responses will be remain anonymous and feedback will be collated.