AR
UR
The ICAS Mena has launched a 24/7 mental health and well-being assistance programme for Dh8 per month with the aim of supporting students and school workforce. According ICAS Mena, leading provider of mental health and well-being services for organisations and educational institutions, the programme will be soon made available all year round.
An ICAS representative said that the programme has been launched as part of ICAS’s employee assistance programme (EAP). Furthermore a direct-to-access facility will be launched soon.
Students and school employees can easily access the mental health support and other wellbeing services at Dh8 per month through this programme. Under the services, users will be given unlimited confidential access to a trained mental health professional, a psychologist, lawyer, independent financial adviser, dietitian, nutritionist, fitness or life coach as per their requirement.
The helpline is offering a wide range language, including English, Arabic, French, Urdu and Hindi. The programme will help the users with various services, including advice on issues related to stress, time management, financial management, relationships, parenting, divorce, childcare, tenancy issues, among other aspects of life and work.
Paul Firth, founder and managing director of ICAS Mena, said that the service has been launched to address the student and teacher mental health crisis.
"The programme would provide specialised interventions for students, and works towards supporting school employees’ mental health and well-being,” he added.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among 15 to 19-year-olds. In addition, anxiety, depression, and behavioural disorders have been reported among leading causes of illness and disability among adolescents.
Firth discussed several studies, underlining mental health crisis faced bu teachers and students without requisite support.
"With longer work hours, more difficulties engaging students remotely, and frequent pivots between hybrid, remote, and in-person instruction, teachers' jobs, already stressful before the pandemic, are even more challenging,” he said.
The new labour law in the UAE is now allowing youth aged 15 and older to take on part-time jobs. In this regard, Firth underlined the need for such a mental health support programme to help people maintain work-life balance.
“We strive to create a holistic approach to health that encompasses cognitive, emotional, spiritual, physical, financial and social well-being," he added.
Firth further explained that the hotline would be answered by master-level counsellors and psychologists who have professional training to conduct biopsychosocial evaluations.
Nerry Toledo, client services and development, ICAS Mena, also stressed the need to address adolescent mental health conditions, noting that negative aspects can adversely affect both physical and mental health.
"Putting well-being at the heart of education as a means to recovery will help build a community where staff feel validated, seen and heard. As a result, a culture for resilience will be created, where individuals will have the ability to recognise and regulate their emotions, and further develop the ability to cope with future life and work challenges,” she added.
SOURCE: Khaleej Times