Online mental health therapy app launched: By youth for youth
The app offers instant messaging but also has the provision of audio and video to build on human interaction.
“We currently have seven therapists and 10 psychological first aiders from Kenya, Nigeria, and Beirut,” says Moses. “A clinical team of four professional counsellors helps us recruit the therapists and do background checks before onboarding.”
Bumps on the road
Moses says he has realized that in spite of signing up, not many people have started using the service because of the cost.
“A young person who has no job or who is a student cannot afford the 29 USD we charge per week for the counsellor’s remuneration, and for managing the platform. So, we have reached out to organizations that can sponsor three or four months of therapy sessions. We also hope to bring providers on board who can help us with internet connection.”
When he is not at school, the 25-year-old who is in his final year at university studying meteorological and material engineering spends time marketing the app under his company name Blueroom Care.
Moses is working with other young people who helped him develop the platform, and engineers who built the website. He foresees a time when there will be more customers signing up than there will be counselors.
“In order to balance the two, we have a waiting list or a pool of providers who have been interviewed and recruited but just waiting to be onboarded. As the customers increase then we can onboard them.”