Theouut Spotlights Psychx Kenyan Health-tech Passionate About Techies Mental Health
Every job comes with its own hazard, you could be a shoreside fisherman and the only hazard will be being bitten by a fish fighting for its life, yes that’s real. Other unfortunate situations could hinder one’s career progress such as an accident with a machine, saying the wrong thing on-air, falling from a pole as an electrician and many more. These things occur yet mankind is not discouraged, people wake up in the morning and go to work, especially when bills call.
Being in the technology space as an employer or employee does not make one immune to job hazards Let us not be deceived by excellent gaming laptops, cool chairs, cute sweatshirts and the amazing speeches of the “tech journey” there are frequent burnouts techies experience which is often caused by the demands of the job. People might not see physical evidence of some negative effects caused by the job, but this does not devalue the psychological effect techies experience.
In a 2019 report, a BIMA Tech Inclusivity & Diversity Report revealed that about 52% of tech workers have experienced depression or anxiety
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) “Two of the most common mental health conditions, depression and anxiety, cost the global economy US$ 1 trillion each year.” Whether in the tech scene or not, it is obvious that the world is greatly impacted by mental illness, especially as it has financial implications. This is where Psychx comes in.
Ever heard of the quote “experience is the best teacher” just as the fisherman who got bitten, will avoid such an experience again, Psychx a health-tech startup is in the process of making a tangible impact as it concerns mental health and wellness across East Africa.
In an exclusive interview with Theouut, Psychx represented by Co-founder and CTO, Freda Mawia Mutune popularly called Fify discusses the motives and goals behind its existence.
Psychx was co-founded by Freda Mawia Mutune a software engineer, Juma Theophilus a pharmacist and Mary Njoki an aeronautical engineer on the 1st of September 2022. The startup got to launch its product service on the 14th of September 2022 with the purpose of procuring early solutions to the rising issues of mental illness amongst individuals in the tech space.
Running by experience, Fify noted that she had once run a startup which crashed one year down the line due to the negligence of mental health by the co-founders. Impacted by such an experience she decided to “take the bull by the horns” so she and her co-founders passionate about mental wellness founded the health-tech startup.
Since its launch, the team has been in the business of providing a user-friendly and interactive platform to access mental health services, through different preferable approaches. Users of the platform can decide their medium of consultation, be it virtual, physical or anonymous. The startup is confident of its evidence-based services as it is affordable accessible and convenient.
Fify explained that her start-up is on the move to make an impact within the health sector ” We are keen on breaking the gap which exists with regards to awareness access and cost of mental health services. Potentially we have realized that mental health issues are responsible for the recent increase in the burden of ailments, which leads to low productivity and also causes annual financial loss for both organizations and communities at large.”
Rather than providing solutions once a mental illness is identified, be it depression or anxiety, Psychx is trying to create a preventive approach by providing mental wellness services. The health tech is in the process of building a community that can provide psychological support and develop a fence against stigmatization within actual communities.
Approaching the health space strategically, Psychx targets users of certain demography, ” We are targeting the ages between 15-25 years, who we consider as tech-savvy, who also spend a considerable amount of time online. We have created a client-therapist match-making platform where the client is given the opportunity to choose a therapist who suits their preferences and needs,” according to the CTO.
Research conducted in 2005 revealed that about 75% of the time, mental health disorders manifest themselves before the age of 25 years, this makes young adults more vulnerable to psychiatric disorders. The East African startup is actively trying to reduce the numbers attached to this fact through its preventive approach.
By Providing a client-accessible platform, and a cost-free consultation location for the therapists, therapy is provided for patients at an affordable cost, thereby making the services highly sort-after.
Currently, Psychx has a positive post-launch experience. The startup is gaining numbers both in funding and interaction. While it launched only two months ago, the initiative has been able to raise a grant, obtain three partnerships, look to expand to Rwanda, and successfully onboard a sizeable amount of users and therapists on the platform.
” While we launched a few months ago, we were able to be part of a talent investor program called Jasiri, where we raised a grant, we are actively hoping to pull more traction and investment as we ensure that the product works excellently and we can create more impact, we are also trying to raise our pre-seeds,” Fify said.
With such an active presence, the health tech is moving with purpose within the ecosystem, “We are living in a country where 1 in 4 people suffers one or more mental health conditions and this has been the biggest contributor to suicide being the second cause of death between the ages of 15-25 years old. Psychx is on a mission of making mental well as a way of living by providing access to cost-effective and comprehensive mental health services. We see a world where everyone has the world to express themselves and how they feel, they can be able to seek mental health services without fear of being judged or discriminated against. We are also committed to privacy and confidentiality by creating systems that guarantee data safety, as well as privacy. Creating a mental safe space is our pleasure, all this is the kind of world we want to see at Psychx”.