A Mental-Health Mission Launches in Australia

Covid-19 has led to a dramatic increase in rates of suicide and mental reports illness, with new findings from the UK released today calling for an immediate solution. 

TV personality Scott Bidmead whose primary passion is modern positive psychology, refused to sit back and watch this, and left his dream job in LA to do something about it. Rolling out his self-funded corporate wellbeing start-up Euda, the former Chairman of Headspace South Australia is well-versed in the space. 

Prof. Ed Bullmore, head of the department of psychiatry at the University of Cambridge and a team of mental health experts have said in BBC News that among key priorities is the need for real-time monitoring of mental health issues, both across the general population and at-risk groups, as well as healthcare professionals. Writing in The Lancet Psychiatry, they say smartphones should be used to monitor mental health in real time.

“The pandemic is clearly having a major social and psychological impact on the whole population, increasing unemployment, separating families and various other changes in the way that we live, that we know are generally major psychological risk factors for anxiety, depression and self-harm,” said Bullmore. 

Closer to home, organisations like Beyond Blue are seeing ‘unprecedented interest’ - Beyond Blue's lead clinical advisor Dr Grant Blashki has said they are supporting 2000 people a day.

Bidmead has been based out of LA since November 2019 where he was working for the Today Show, Roadshow Films and Foxtel interviewing the likes of Morgan Freeman, the Rock and Margot Robbie, as well as co-hosting with the likes of Tony Robbins and sporting events in China.

“I was presenting and producing TV shows and working with A-listers in LA, and turned down the opportunity to host an incredible new show, I realised I can help people right now because mental health has never been more important.  

“This has been my passion for a long time and through working with incredible experts, Headspace and the likes of Tony Robbins and Osher I realised the need for something like Euda, a tool to measure and take action on mental health and wellbeing,” he said. 

Euda is a turnkey application which is science and AI-powered. Fusing daily insights with curated content that presents proven techniques that boost wellbeing, engagement and mental health to motivate and balance a workforce or community. It also has incredible data-collecting power, allowing corporations and government to take initiatives to improve sectors, job types, suburbs and trades that demonstrate via heat-maps and trends, that employees are not in their best emotional position, as well as the triggers individuals are dealing with. 

 Employees benefit from an empowered working experience through incentivised rewards by engaging with the content that includes articles, podcasts, meditations and videos, along with specific programs delivered by top experts to upskill. The opportunity to voice their opinion anonymously if they wish also ensures they feel valued. 

Bidmead is collaborating with Beautiful Minds Australia, a mental health organisation which has been around for over 15 years, supporting 935 schools nationwide as well as strong partnerships with 20th Century Fox, Nestle, Cottons and FUJIFILM.

CEO Marina Passalaris said Beautiful Minds and their team of 85 expert educators are “excited to be collaborating with Euda on some important projects around wellbeing.”

“We are passionate about helping Aussies through this tough time and feel that Euda gives people the opportunity to really tune into what is going on for them and their mental health,” Passalaris said. 

“We have tested the app on our staff and are happy with its functionality. This easy to use, daily tool is a missing piece in workplaces that we feel will really benefit business owners as they stay connected to the health and wellbeing of their team.” She said. 

Euda has also launched a movement to highlight the need for a focus on #wellbeingnow. 

“We are raising awareness and promoting action because there just isn’t enough being done for mental health during covid-19. Some incredible people like Lauv, Sam Webb, Scott Tweedie, Jason Dundas and Alissa Smith are already on board to help spread the message and push for more action,” Bidmead said. 

The movement will promote a focus on awareness, action and seeking help early. Influencers are sharing stories and the public are getting involved in wellbeing activities. 

Leveraging his Graduate Diploma in Psychology, Bidmead has also been offering free group wellbeing sessions to corporate teams such as F45 across Australia to push the #wellbeingnow movement.  

Euda is in discussions with a number of national organisations and is set to publicly launch within the fortnight.   

www.euda.co 

https://www.instagram.com/euda.co/

-ENDS-

Media Enquiries     

Elia Lom   | elia@tracado.co  |  0411 211 939

Talent:

Scott Bidmead- Founder Euda

Marina Passalaris – CEO Beautiful Minds