Overview
Problem
How might we empower young Canadians to use the mental health services available through their workplace benefits plan?
Outcome
MyESS (My Emotional Support System) is a centralized mobile app focused on preventative strategies and reinforcement of measures to protect mental health available to employees covered by Sun Life Insurance.
Info
Role
Project designer (persona, user journey, flows, prototype, presenter)
Timeline
2 days (competition)
2 days (with the SunLife team to integrate winning design into their ecosystem)
Tools
Figma
Teammates
Secondary Research
Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices.
Young Canadians are Experiencing Declining Mental Health
1 in 5 Canadians experiences mental illness in any given year. The majority are between the ages of 18-34.
70% of workers aged 18-34 said their mental health impacted their ability to work in 2021.
Young Canadians Value Mental Health Services
88% of respondents to a recent Globe and Mail survey aged 18-34 said that mental health services were the most desired benefit in group insurance plans.
73% said they would be willing to leave their current job for one with better mental health benefits.
The Disconnect
81% of working Canadians with mental health issues aren't using their workplace benefits.
Behavioural Considerations
The goal is to connect young Canadians to their benefits plans and the following behavioural considerations should be considered in the design:
01 Poor Mental Health Literacy
People may lack the skills/knowledge to recognize symptoms and need help.
02 Social Norms
Social norms are shared standards of acceptable behaviour by groups. If people believe others are not seeking help, they are less likely to do so themselves.
03 Hyperbolic Discounting
People tend to value immediate, smaller rewards more than long-term, larger rewards. This explains why they may prioritize short-term gratification (e.g., avoidance, unhealthy coping) over the long-term benefits of treatment.
04 Optimism Bias
People may overestimate their ability to “tough it out” and improve without professional assistance.
05 Stigma and Embarrassment
People may worry about others judging or treating them differently if they seek treatment. This can also include internalized self-stigma (self-judgement).
Ideation
Collaborative Brainstorm
We discussed. We doodled. We sketched. We crossed things out. We re-evaluated. We sought feedback. We played with playdoh. We freely brainstormed. And we let our ideas fly.
The room we worked in as a group with white marker walls on all four sides.
Our doodles and sketches of ideas on the whiteboard wall.
Persona
Hannah the Heartbroken Worker
Meet Hannah! She's a recent graduate who has been working at AiTech for about two years. Hannah’s career is blossoming. However, she has recently broken up with her partner, which is taking a toll on her mental health and her ability to perform well at work.
"I've never had to think about mental health until now. This is uncharted territory."
Summary
25 years old
Financial analyst @ AiTech
Hybrid employee
Goals
01 Achieve a good work-life balance
02 Navigate mental health services without judgement
03 Take advantage of her benefits package
Needs
01 Be confident in self-directing her mental health journey
02 Feel valued as an individual at her company
03 Access digestible information about health benefits
Obstacles
01 Lost main support system after a recent breakup
02 Finds difficulty opening up and dealing with mental health struggles
03 Not fully aware of her mental health benefits and resources provided by her company
As-Is Journey Map
😄
Step 1: General Onboarding
Goes through the onboarding process with the organization.
"What does my benefits package look like?"
😭
Step 2: Two Years Later...Break Up
Figuring out finances, dealing with the aftermath of a recent breakup, and overthinking when driving to work for 2 hours.
"I don't feel like going to work, but I need to make money."
🫠
Step 3: Work Day
Figuring out how to complete tasks despite feeling detached and constantly checking the clock.
"There's a huge client presentation later this afternoon, and I'm not in the right headspace."
🤔
Step 4: Searches for Mental Health Resources
Googling ways on how she can improve her mental health.
"I don't know how to look for a therapist."
😔
Step 5: Returns Home
Binge-watching TV, overlapping, and isolating herself from friends and family so they do not ask about the breakup.
"Nothing is working."
Key Considerations
Current Landscape
The current state of access to mental health services has focused primarily on providing reactive measures.
Gap in Current Services
The existing services fail to address that maintaining mental health is not a goal but an ongoing journey.
Our Focus
Our project will address this gap by proposing a centralized system focused on preventative strategies and reinforcing measures to protect mental health.
To-Be Journey Map
😄
Step 1: Onboarding with MyESS app ⭐
Goes through the onboarding process with MyESS and the organization.
"It seems like this company cares a lot about mental health."
😭
Step 2: Two Years Later...Break Up
Figuring out finances, dealing with the aftermath of a recent breakup, and overthinking when driving to work for 2 hours.
"I don't feel like going to work, but I need to make money."
🫠
Step 3: Work Day
Figuring out how to complete tasks despite feeling detached and constantly checking the clock.
"There's a huge client presentation later this afternoon, and I'm not in the right headspace."
😮
Step 4: Check MyESS ⭐
Checks MyESS notification at lunch and sign up for a mental health workshop.
"This MyESS recommendation might be useful; I should consider therapy."
😌
Step 5: Returns Home
Checks benefits to see if it covers therapy and searches for a psychotherapist.
"I'm glad my benefits cover therapy sessions!"
🤩
Step 6: Books therapy session ⭐
Decides to book first therapy session after checking MyESS recommendation.
"Accessing mental health resources was not as hard as I thought it would be."
Prototype
Onboarding Onto MyESS
We start with Hannah coming across a QR code during their initial onboarding to download MyESS.
Once she’s downloaded MyESS, the app will require her to input her employee number to connect to AiTech’s benefit plan.
She’ll click and scroll through the following introductory slides that outline MyESS’s main goals.
Dashboard of Resources
Events and Profile
Check-In Notifications
The app asks Hannah to track her feelings at that moment. If negative moods are consistently reported, the app provides personalized support suggestions. The information collected is displayed on a separate dashboard on the check-ins page.
Presentation
Considering our mentor's feedback, we took a storytelling approach in our presentation and grounded it with Hannah and her experience journey. As a result, we won first place! Special thanks to all the organizers and Sun Life mentors for their incredible feedback!
Future Considerations
Educational Resources
Embed educational resources and articles for users to increase mental health literacy.
Health Tracker
Implement a comprehensive mood tracker system to aid users' self-awareness.
Social Connectedness
Include thoughtful prompts on an anonymous discussion board to foster a sense of community.
Concept Expansion with SunLife's UX Team
The winning team spends a day at the central SunLife office in downtown Toronto integrating our proposed design into their existing ecosystem.
New Challenge
How can we leverage the thinking behind MyESS into the MySunLife App and integrate Sun Life’s Mental Health Coach resource?
Update to come soon!
