Counselling session subsidies and other benefits in suite of initiatives for business, emotional and mental health
Kuala Lumpur, 20 September 2021 – In an on-going effort to support Malaysian and global startups to weather the on-going and long-term effects of COVID-19, the Malaysian Global Innovation and Creativity Centre (MaGIC) recently launched MaGICARE – a suite of initiatives for the startup community.
The MaGICARE kit provides startups with resources; rejuvenation and recovery assistance – in areas of business, finance and personal well-being.
Amongst others, the package offers a 50 percent subsidy for one-on-one counselling sessions for 10 persons per month, for 3 months until the end of October. This includes deep support through professional counselling or therapy; convenient and confidential remote therapy sessions, offered by Naluri.
Additionally, MaGICARE offers startups to access a 24/7 careline through the Naluri Community Programme – with unlimited calls, manned by a team of clinical psychologists and registered counsellors. Startups can also access webinars and emotional well-being assessments conducted by a clinical psychologist on topics of mental and physical well-being under this package.
“Startups navigating through the pandemic are being loaded with multiple issues – while trying to keep their business afloat and having to grapple with declining mental health and well-being, which could further exacerbate financial difficulty and lead to huge productivity losses. Therefore, we hope MaGICARE can help us, as a community, to better connect, adapt, recover and elevate our resilience,” said Amiruddin Abdul Shukor, Acting Chief Executive Officer of MaGIC.
“MaGICARE is about turning around, together,” said Amiruddin.
“Investment into mental, emotional and physical health support for employees and owners alike, is imperative. We take a multi-disciplinary approach in addressing medical needs as well as improving emotional resilience,” adds Azran Osman Rani, CEO, Naluri. The Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine stated that following treatment for depression, more than 80 percent of employees saw improved work performance and higher job satisfaction.
There is a directory of financial aid, grant and funding programmes and relief assistance resources available on the MaGICARE site. Startups can also tap on a variety of capacity building programmes and e-learning resources including online bootcamps, startup essentials, internship and the Startup Campus which are now accessible for free or at a subsidised rate. Additionally, MaGIC is currently offering a five-month rental waiver of its co-working spaces in Cyberjaya and Kuching, to help ease the cash flow of entrepreneurs.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently warned of the long-term effects of COVID-19, calling for the strengthening of mental health services in general and the improvement of access to care via technology.
Startups are encouraged to choose from the full spread of support services offered via MaGICARE or contact [email protected] for further information.
