Upswing, a wraparound student services organization, has partnered with TimelyMD, the leading virtual health and well-being solution in higher education, to support the whole student with wrap-around services, including live, on-demand virtual mental health care.
A recent survey found that nine out of ten students believe there is a full-blown campus mental health crisis. Upswing’s mission is to create parity in the resources available to nontraditional and online students, and now the challenges of accessing resources virtually extend to 14 million students as many colleges work to expand online or hybrid models. In January 2020, Upswing introduced the first mental health and wellness module to a student engagement platform. The partnership with TimelyMD further augments Upswing’s ability to support the whole student.
“A 2021 study conducted by UPCEA and StraighterLine found that only 8% of students who dropped out of college did so for academic reasons. The challenges faced by the majority of students range from personal to financial setbacks to issues like depression and anxiety,” says Upswing co-founder and CEO Melvin Hines. “Students who are not on campus, adult students, online students, and nontraditional students often lack a sense of belonging and knowing what resources are available and how to access them.”
Hines says Upswing’s key focus this past year was mental health. TimelyMD is ideally suited to support this focus area because it serves more than one million students at more than 200 college and university campuses across the country, providing students with access to licensed providers for medical care, mental health support, and basic needs assistance at no cost to students and without the hassle of insurance. Currently, TimelyMD serves one in every 10 community college students – many of whom are nontraditional and/or online learners.
The need for 24/7 access to high-quality care has never been more important. According to the American Council on Education, student mental health is the top concern of college and university presidents. Sixty percent of all students who have sought mental health support through TimelyMD’s TimelyCare platform said they would have done nothing if the service were not available.
The addition of TimelyMD’s on-demand virtual mental health care service (TalkNow) and digital self-care content helps Upswing ensure that every student using its platform has someone to reach out to in their time of need. Upswing’s users can access the TimelyCare platform through Upswing’s integrated services platform. Ana, Upswing’s virtual texting service, is also available to direct students to the TimelyCare platform.
“Meeting the need for equitable, on-demand access to care is a critical challenge colleges and universities face. TimelyMD is pleased to partner with Upswing to provide more students with additional on-ramps to mental health care,” says Luke Hejl, TimelyMD CEO and co-founder. “Our integration with Upswing provides resources to help students be well and thrive as they navigate their educational journey.”
“We want to support students as fully as possible, and we’re excited our partnership with TimelyMD makes mental health care accessible for students by providing them with the help they need when and where they need it. And it defeats the barriers standing between students and their success,” adds Hines.
TimelyMD is the leading virtual health and well-being solution for higher education. Its mission is to improve the well-being of college students by making virtual medical and mental health care accessible anytime, anywhere. TimelyMD’s virtual care platform, TimelyCare, includes a range of services, including mental health counseling, on-demand emotional support, medical care, psychiatric care, health coaching, basic needs assistance, faculty and staff guidance, and digital self-care content.
