The Best Doctors Mental Health Navigator service aims to identify the correct diagnosis and provide an action plan for patients suffering from mental health problems

United_Kingdom_Assicurazioni_Generali

Image: Generali’s building in the UK. Photo: courtesy of Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A.

Global insurance and asset management provider Generali UK has launched a new mental health navigator service, offering complementary support and guidance for all employees of Group Income Protection (GIP) policyholders and their families.

The new mental health navigator from Best Doctors, part of Teladoc Health, is planned to be fully integrated into the comprehensive mental health pathway.

The announcement follows the roll-out of the Best Doctors Mental Health Navigator in Canada and Australia by virtual care provider Teladoc Health.

New service to be fully integrated into Generali UK’s comprehensive mental health pathway

The new mental health navigator service is intended to identify the correct diagnosis and provide an action plan for patients suffering from mental health problems.

Generali Employee Benefits UK claims and medical underwriting head Colin Hawes said: “This comes at a time in the UK when businesses are bombarded with a confusing array of mental health support services: at last count, around 3,000 self-care apps to name but one solution.

“And pressure is increasingly being placed on Line Managers and Mental Health First Aiders to identify potential problems and appropriately signpost to relevant and useful solutions.

“It’s an incredibly complex landscape. And in order to know where to turn, employees need to first be helped by mental health trained clinicians to understand the problem.

“Only then can they learn how to fix it. This is one of the ways in which the Teladoc Health service is strengthening our mental health care pathway.”

The Best Doctors Mental Health Navigator helps to improve integration of existing mental health support services and also ensures people get access to proper diagnosis from a mental health clinician.

The service also helps people who seek a better understanding of an existing mental health condition or treatment programme.

Earlier this year, Generali had agreed to offload the life run-off portfolio of its UK branch to a subsidiary of Reinsurance Group of America (RGA).

The portfolio considered for sale by Generali, which mainly consists of annuity business, corresponds to nearly €680m (£598.33m) in best-estimate liabilities as of 31 December 2018.