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How A Career In Tech Prepared One Social Entrepreneur To Shake Up The Mental Health Sector
Mental health is an integral and essential component of health, according to the World Health Organization, yet many people do not have access to the care they need. It is estimated that over 400 million people suffer from depression globally, with millions more suffering from other conditions. Thousands of patients living with mental health problems are undiagnosed, due to social stigma and a lack of medical advancement in some countries.
Recently, though, doctors and health professionals have begun leveraging technology to tackle this global problem. Public awareness campaigns, new websites and user interfaces have done a lot to remove the stigma associated with seeking mental health care.
Even when the answer seems obvious, sometimes the path to success can take unexpected turns. When social entrepreneur Krystian Fikert left his home country of Poland for Ireland in 2004, he had every intention of using his training as a clinical psychologist to work and help people, but this was not immediately possible. Ireland’s strong job market made it an attractive destination for foreign workers at the time, but most positions were in the IT sector. Despite not having a formal background in tech, Fikert’s first job was at Google’s European headquarters in Dublin. During this time, Fikert noticed that many Polish coworkers had trouble accessing mental health services in Dublin. Although most of them spoke good English, many did not feel comfortable expressing themselves in a language that wasn’t their mother tongue. Fikert saw an opportunity to use his skills in psychology and technology to help people, and together with two other Polish psychologists, he set up a website offering volunteer mental health services to local Polish speakers.
Calling itself Poradnia Psychologiczna Dublin (PPD), by 2007 the small organization had successfully applied for and received grants from Polish and Irish non-profit organizations. The team was able to rent a space and expand their services to serve other immigrant communities, with Italian, Spanish, and Russian-speaking psychologists joining the team. Because the psychologists were committed to the goal of providing affordable care to people who were otherwise underserved, PPD was able to offer much smaller fees to their customers. Ireland’s public health system requires patients to obtain a referral from their General Practitioner before seeking mental health services, and private clinics can charge between €80-€120 per hour. By contrast, Fikert’s team offered services in multiple languages for the affordable rate of €50 per hour for full-time workers, €30 for part-time, and €20 for the unemployed and students.
Several years and successful rounds of grant funding later in 2010, PPD rebranded as MyMind and in 2012, the organization was selected to receive funding and coaching from through a new partnership with Boehringer-Ingelheim Ireland, through a partnership with Ashoka, who had elected Krystian Fikert as a Fellow in 2011.
One of MyMind’s distinguishing features is its online counseling service. Many first-time appointment seekers are more comfortable using the online platform to explore their options, and it allows clients to completely manage their appointments online. It also normalizes access to mental health professionals. “We offer online video consultations through Google Hangouts and Skype. Online chat is also available to clients, as well as email-based questions and answers,” Fikert told the Irish Times in April.
MyMind’s team of more than 80 psychologists offers counseling in 15 languages, and Fikert maintains that this policy has been a significant factor in the success of MyMind to date. “It is easier to express emotions in your mother tongue. Sometimes people don’t have enough language capacity in their second language, or they might avoid certain words or expressions to express how they feel,” says Fikert.
Nine years on, the organization’s growth has been remarkable. From serving 300 clients in their founding year, MyMind now has four national clinics in Dublin, Cork and Limerick, and reported serving over 3,100 clients through their online service in 2014. Krystian Fikert recently completed a tour of mental health centers in India as part of the Boehringer-Ingelheim Making More Health global initiative, where he met with and mentored young social entrepreneurs. Fikert said, “In India, I saw firsthand how different worlds, whether business or social, can come together to create real change. I was inspired by how innovative ideas can have the smallest beginning, but grow to have a significant impact in a community.
“MyMind was born out of one simple idea—better mental health for everyone. And as we grow, we strive to make a real and lasting impact in as many lives as possible.”
By Fiona Koch, Communications Manager for Ashoka Ireland. This article was first published on Forbes. Fiona is working with Fellows and changemakers to maximize their global impact.
