Digital mental health platform ThoughtFull and pharmaceutical firm Pfizer Singapore have signed an exclusive partnership to bring more access to biopsychosocial care to people in Singapore. 

The collaboration aims to counter the stigma around mental health and bridge the gap in treatment.

Under this partnership, ThoughtFull will be providing free three-month access to counsellor or psychologist support via its mobile app ThoughtFullChat. The app also features curated self-serve content, tracking, and one-on-one behavioural coaching and therapy. 

On its end, Pfizer Singapore will help connect psychosocial and pharmacological care, adding value to their practice as well. 

WHY IT MATTERS

ThoughtFull and Pfizer are mainly targeting patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). White paper research by accounting firm KPMG found that the disease is one of the largest causes of out-of-pocket healthcare expenditure in Asia-Pacific. In a 2016 study, Singapore's Institute of Mental Health (IMH) found that the treatment gap for MDD stood at above 73% due to stigma and the inaccessibility of care. 

Considering this, Pfizer Singapore Country Manager Erika Pagani said they initiated the partnership with ThoughtFull to "challenge the stigmas associated with mental health and to develop a digital mental health space that will help support the mental healthcare ecosystem in Singapore".

Meanwhile, Joan Low, founder and CEO of ThoughtFull, noted how the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the acute gaps in end-to-end mental healthcare delivery. "As we transition out of this pandemic, our work to close these gaps in biopsychosocial support has only just begun," she added. 

MARKET SNAPSHOT

Another Singaporean company, Holmusk, recently entered into a partnership with the National Healthcare Group and the IMH to co-develop advanced analytics tools that will enable earlier detection of and intervention in mental health disorders. They will also ​​create a suite of digital therapeutics and tools for mental healthcare that can be deployed in hospitals and clinics across primary care and community settings.

Meanwhile, Singapore's Ministry of Health through the Health Promotion Board is set to launch later this year an online portal for mental health resources on HealthHub.