News
Luna prioritizes mental health with expansion of student resources
Partnership with virtual care leader, TimelyCare, offers 24⁄7 equitable access to well-being resources
Completing a degree in higher education is an incredible accomplishment. Nevertheless, students encounter many challenges along the way academically, socially and emotionally. While every student’s collegiate journey is unique, Luna Community College provides a wide breadth of services that meets the needs of each and every student on campus through its Luna Strong Program. Founded in 2022 with funding from the New Mexico Higher Education Department, the mission of Luna Strong is to increase student success, engagement, retention, and completion by promoting the 8 Dimensions of Wellness: emotional, physical, occupational, social, spiritual, intellectual, environmental, and financial.
With support from the American Rescue Plan CARES Act Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF), Luna has partnered with TimelyCare, higher education’s most trusted virtual health and well-being provider, to offer students free and equitable access to mental health support, medical care and basic needs assistance. The partnership is an extension of existing resources available to students, with a goal of improving student well-being, engagement and retention.
Luna students and employees will have access to TimelyCare services beginning on Tuesday, April 2. Orientation events throughout April will introduce the campus community to these new services. For more information, download the app or visit timelycare.com/Luna.
The need for 24⁄7 access to high-quality care has never been more important. Dr. Carol Linder, Luna Strong’s founder and current VP of Finance and Administration, explains that the coronavirus pandemic has accentuated the preexisting issue of basic needs insecurity and increased health disparities in Luna’s service area of northeastern New Mexico. “Students have been especially hard hit by disruptions in their education and accompanying mental and behavioral health challenges. The 2023 New Mexico Basic Needs survey of 27 colleges and universities revealed that an astonishing 70 percent of Luna students are grappling with some food and/or housing insecurity. Luna is committed to narrowing these disparities and meeting the needs of our students.”
Through TimelyCare on their phone or other device, Luna students, faculty, and staff will select from a wide-ranging menu of virtual care options from licensed physicians and counselors in all 50 states – at no cost and without the barrier of traditional insurance – including:
- On-demand and appointment-based medical care
- On-demand mental health and emotional support (TalkNow)
- Appointment-based mental health counseling (up to 6 sessions each academic year)
- Health coaching
- Basic Needs assistance
- Care navigation
- Peer support community
- Digital self-care content
“At the forefront of our commitment to student well-being is the priority of health and safety. TimelyCare’s user-friendly platform, convenience and immediacy make it easier than ever for our students to access on-demand support,” says Luna Interim Director of Allied Health and Public Service Casey Applegate-Aguilar. “TimelyCare enhances campus resources by making care more readily available to students when they need it, limiting the spread of illness, reducing the stigma of mental health issues, and granting peace of mind to students and their families.”
The partnership with TimelyCare allows Luna Community College to deliver a hybrid model of care in collaboration with on-campus resources. Benefits include:
Convenient 24⁄7 care – Physical and mental health issues often present themselves outside regular business hours, and TimelyCare makes seeking support or treatment as easy and convenient as making a video or phone call. Nationally, half of mental health care visits through TimelyCare occur after regular business hours or on weekends.
Reduced wait times – Many campus counseling centers often have a 2-3 week wait time for appointments, whereas students can typically connect with a TimelyCare provider in less than five minutes.
Diverse provider network – TimelyCare’s diverse and culturally responsive provider network reflects and is proud to serve students who embody diversity in race, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, age, religion and worldview, language, health, ability, sexual orientation, socioeconomic and immigration status, and more. More than half of mental health providers identify as people of color. The platform also offers professionals who identify as LGBTQIA+, speak multiple languages, and translation services to support more than 240 languages. Students scheduling services can choose to meet with a specific provider or select the first available.
Peace of mind –TimelyCare is a safe, secure, URAC-accredited and HIPAA-compliant platform that follows campus-specific protocols to facilitate care coordination and follow-up to ensure continuity of care. Integrations with leading learning management systems ensure students have even more on-ramps to in-the-moment support whenever they need it.
Three-quarters (75 percent) of college students who accessed virtual mental health and well-being interventions through TimelyCare reported mental health improvements – including 100 percent those who presented as a potential suicide risk. More than half (53 percent) of all students who have sought mental health support through TimelyCare said they would have done nothing if the service were not available.
“With nearly seven out of 10 students reporting that they experience mental health issues such as stress, anxiety or depression, expanded access to virtual health and well-being interventions like TimelyCare has never been more important,” said Luke Hejl, CEO and co-founder of TimelyCare. “Ultimately, supporting students means providing access to care whenever and wherever they need it.”
About TimelyCare
TimelyCare is higher education’s most trusted virtual health and well-being provider, serving 2.3+ million students at more than 350 campuses nationwide. Founded in 2017, TimelyCare pioneered the first telehealth solution built exclusively for higher education, with a mission to improve the health and well-being of college students by making virtual medical and mental health care accessible anytime, anywhere. Today its comprehensive suite 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 self-guided wellness tools – expands the breadth of campus resources and empowers student success.