MindCare Club on building telemental healthcare in the Philippines

Mental health is one of the Philippines’ most urgent needs—and one of its most difficult markets.

In the Philippines, conversations about mental health often begin in moments of crisis. But for this passion project-turned-business venture, Filipinos don’t have to wait for loss or distress before the silence goes on too long.

MindCare Club stands by this philosophy as a startup telemental health service provider, one that has seen its fair share of wins and losses in a country where there are only some 600 psychiatrists serving over 110 million residents.

But to the team behind it, it’s not all about numbers. It’s also about providing sustainable, high-quality care when specialists are scarce, infrastructure is limited, and public spending on mental health is low.

Even before telemedicine went mainstream

MindCare pioneered an online-first approach to mental health services well before telemedicine became mainstream. “We didn’t start with a big budget,” head of operations Christine Rodriguez told radar Business. “We started with what we needed to function.”

The company slowly navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and the nationwide lockdown that ensued. But internally, it faced its biggest hurdle yet: the loss of its CEO, philanthropist Brian Tenorio, due to cancer complications, less than a year after MindCare entered the market.

“It was in the middle of building and getting MindCare Club started. But, unfortunately, he didn’t make it back healthy enough for us, as we had hoped,” company president Dr. Mark Platon said. “Losing a dear friend and the visionary behind the company was a huge loss for us all.”

The rest of the team turned to quality care to fill the gaps and determine the company’s future direction.

Making a business out of mental health

Instead of chasing patient volume, MindCare deliberately resisted quantity in favor of filtering clients first in what they call the “stepped care model.” In this design, clients are routed first to general practitioners and then escalated to specialized experts only when necessary, saving on consultation fees in the long run.

While some may raise concerns about monetizing mental health, often arguing that experts exploit their patients’ budgets, MindCare holds a different perspective, acknowledging the sentiment that sessions can be costly for many.

“It breaks my heart because sessions are expensive. And one of the first things people ask is if it is free,” Rodriguez said. “Not everyone has an HMO, and people are dealing with basic needs first—sometimes, the monthly budget isn’t even enough for that.”

But one great advantage the company has is its organizational care, which focuses on long-term sustainability goals in the corporate setting. These, Platon said, take months It may take years to mature, but it helps advance mental health awareness in a country where public funding is minimal.

Seeing patients ‘graduate’

MindCare still observes key performance indicators by upholding industry standards among practitioners. While people prefer services to be more affordable, the balance between healthcare and profitability ensures neither party is undercut.

MindCare prefers for clients to ‘graduate’ and find inner healing despite the financial strain of telemental health services for the common Filipino.

The MindCare team understands the struggle and offers installment schemes for sessions. It also banks on the digital nature of the service, which frees clients from long commutes and caters to immobile patients.

“We had to set the company up officially as a business so we could continue to operate uninterrupted,” Platon said. “We also realized dreams aren’t enough, so we’re preparing for new investors. Behind the growing needs and ever-changing environment, we can offer more robust service and options for our clients.”

“We realized MindCare could be so much more,” he added.

Looking ahead, with all hands on deck

With approximately 2,500 mental health professionals in the country across all disciplines, MindCare faces competition not only for clients but also for providers. The business is expanding its practitioner network and actively looks for experts who have empathy and a willingness to collaborate, aside from their credentials.

“Apart from the knowledge or the qualifications, do we also have a shared vision? It’s important for us to build a community of mental health practitioners who have similar values,” Platon said.

Reaching beyond private service, MindCare also extends its message through its social media presence as a measure to increase mental health awareness.

“The people should be taken care of. If we empower communities, help can become more local,” Rodriguez said. “Only then would people open up more.”

 

 

It breaks my heart because sessions are expensive. And one of the first things people ask is if it is free. Not everyone has an HMO, and people are dealing with basic needs first—sometimes, the monthly budget isn’t even enough for that.

 

 

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