PRESERVING OUR SANITY
BEST MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELLING
WINNER: The Cyrus & Priya Vandrevala Foundation, Mumbai
WHY IT WON: For ramping up its free mental health support services tenfold during the pandemic
BEFORE THE COVID pandemic struck, the Cyrus and Priya Vandrevala Foundation had 10 counsellors. Over the next 18 months, that number was increased tenfold to deal with the massive surge in calls to helplines. “There was a lot of anxiety about the disease, the lockdowns and the future,” says Dr Arun John, CEO of the foundation. “Relationship and privacy issues also arose; people also called in because of financial difficulties and job losses.”
The foundation introduced cloud telephony in August 2020 to ensure seamless connectivity and to ensure that no call goes unanswered. It also allows for calls to be scheduled keeping in mind the preferred language of the caller. Website chats and WhatsApp counselling were also introduced, which “opened a huge vista for the
younger generation” to voice their concerns, especially those relating to exams and career prospects. Follow-up calls for those with suicidal thoughts were also arranged.
With nearly 25,000 communications a month, Dr John is aware that work isn’t going to slow down anytime soon for his team of 123 counsellors and psychologists, some of whom are required to burn the midnight oil as calls come in as late as 2 am. In fact, he sees the foundation’s workforce expanding to 300 by April 2022.
Priya Vandrevala, one of the founders, says, “To respond to the growing need, we increased our staff base exponentially, invested in technology and training and continued to grow our services. We have participated in almost 1 million conversations, giving free counselling and crisis support.”