TimelyMD Partners with Violet to Advance Health Equity for College Students

Partnership is the First of its Kind in Higher Education, Focusing on Upskilling for Cultural Competence and Care Coordination to Improve Care for Young Adult Patients

FORT WORTH, Texas, Feb. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- TimelyMD, the leading virtual health and well-being solution in higher education, announced today that it has partnered with Violet, the first health equity platform, to upskill cultural competence and deliver identity-centered care coordination, and to ultimately impact and close disparity gaps for diverse students across the country.

"TimelyMD and Violet are pioneers in improving equitable access to care, and we couldn't be more honored to ensure inclusivity for college students than through this partnership—a first in higher education," said Gaurang Choksi, Violet's founder and CEO. "Both TimelyMD and Violet are focused on making an impact on the current youth mental health crisis, which in tandem is related to other health disparities that disproportionately impact historically marginalized young people. This partnership will significantly improve inclusive care delivery for students, and we look forward to sharing those outcomes through case studies."

Through the partnership, Violet will lead TimelyMD providers through its proprietary benchmarking framework to ensure competency in the latest best practices for delivering inclusive care. From there, mental health and medical providers will go through Violet's cultural competence upskilling program to deliver improved care for BIPOC, LGBTQ, and TGNC patients.

TimelyMD is trusted to serve more than 1.5 million students at 250 colleges and universities across the country, with licensed providers in all 50 states. The company serves as a 24/7 virtual extension of campus health and counseling center resources, with a goal of improving student well-being, engagement, and retention. Sixty percent of all students who have sought mental health support through the TimelyCare platform said they would have done nothing if the service was not available.

"Our campus partners represent a broad spectrum across higher education, and our commitment to inclusion builds upon evidence-based care that is effective, timely and relevant to all of the students we serve," said Bob Booth, M.D., Chief Care Officer at TimelyMD. "We are proud of the investments we've made to date to build a diverse provider network, provide cultural competency training, and enhance accessibility features. Working with Violet furthers our dedication to providing on-demand, equitable access to care that embraces the background, identities, and lived experiences of each and every student."

Research shows that there is an urgent need to address the health concerns of students across the country.

• Students needing care are discouraged – According to a recent Center for Collegiate Mental Health study of students who used campus counseling services, gender-diverse students and students with disabilities are more likely to drop out than other students, on average.
• The need for care is there, but undiagnosed – Another study evaluating mental health disparities among college students of color found that Asian American, Latinx, and Multiracial students were more likely to have clinically elevated depression symptoms when each group was compared to all other students. And, The National Institutes of Health reported that approximately thirty-four percent of Black students feel "so depressed in the last year it was difficult to function."
• Providers need cultural competence upskilling and empathy – Whether college students or not, 29% of transgender patients were refused to be seen by their providers according to a study by the Center for American Progress.

More than half of TimelyMD's provider network identifies as BIPOC, and all are trained in and inclusive of varying backgrounds and identities, including race, socioeconomic status, LGBTQIA+, gender, sexual orientation, different abilities, and the impacts of inequality in health care. By using Violet's benchmarking, TimelyMD will bolster and strengthen its commitment to inclusion, around the clock.

TimelyMD is among 25 leading health care organizations using Violet. Violet's partners, including TimelyMD, understand that they're responsible for the well-being of an increasingly diverse population as "minority" populations will become the majority nationwide within 30 years.

Violet's team—a group of mission-driven queer, BIPOC, and Disabled individuals—believes that the right tools for clinicians and all health care staff are the solution to building health equity, thereby improving health outcomes and saving billions in excess care spend.

About TimelyMD
TimelyMD is the leading virtual health and well-being solution for higher education. Its mission is to improve the well-being of college students by making virtual medical and mental health care accessible anytime, anywhere. TimelyMD's virtual care platform, TimelyCare, includes a range of services, including mental health counseling, on-demand emotional support, medical care, psychiatric care, health coaching, basic needs assistance, faculty and staff guidance, peer support and digital self-care content. Visit timely.md to learn how TimelyMD is inspiring the digital transformation of campus health and the future of student care.

About Violet
Violet is the first full-suite health equity platform, offering cultural competence benchmarking, education, care matching, and more. Research shows that inclusive care is proven to generate better health outcomes. With Violet, health care organizations can build health equity for all. Today, the platform is trusted by leading organizations, including Octave, Brightline, Galileo, Parsley Health, Headway, and Northwell Hospitals to launch identity-centered care for their patients. For more information about Violet, please visit: www.joinviolet.com.

CONTACTS: Katie Neal, [email protected], 336-662-3080
Katlyn Nesvold, Amendola Communications for TimelyMD, [email protected], 715-559-0046
Carson Quinn, ZindseyMEDIA for Violet, [email protected], 312-339-9779

SOURCE TimelyMD