TimelyCare App Helps Students Take Charge of Their Mental Health

By Luciana Chavez Special to Merced College Sophomore psychology student Esmeralda Vera was doing her work in the Disabled Students Program Services (DSPS) office at Merced College, when DSPS Director Estelina Muñoz approached her and asked, “Hey, can you check out this app for us? We want to see how it works for students.” Vera obliged, downloading the TimelyCare app. After registering, Vera realized she had just logged into a new world, a new way to strengthen her mental health. “It was February, the day before Valentine’s Day, and all of a sudden I felt like I needed to try it,” Vera said. TimelyCare is a virtual mental health and medical provider created specifically for college and university students. Using the app, students can make Zoom counseling and medical appointments with qualified practitioners and avail themselves of other information and interventions. “We were looking for resources that we hadn’t used before,” Muñoz said. “And, for students, we know their phone is everything to them. So what can we offer them?” Students now carry a resource they can use 24/7. It’s free to all enrolled Merced College students, except for incarcerated students and dual enrollment students. It’s an exciting addition to the mental health resources that the college provides.

Back in 2021, as students all over the country struggled while attending school remotely during the pandemic, California allocated additional funds to higher education institutions to add mental health services. Merced College used the first allotment of funds to hire Rachelle Garcia, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) and now a part-time faculty member. She works alongside full-time therapist Jill Henningsgaard Vierra, LMFT, one day per week. (Henningsgaard splits her time between the Los Banos and Merced campuses.) For 2024-25, the college researched new technology interventions for improving mental health. They looked at the success and usage rates for various apps, and found TimelyCare had a fantastic reputation in higher education. “It meets that need for students outside of 8-to-5 business hours,” Muñoz said. “Our counselors are so busy. It’s now more convenient for our busy students to have a therapist and a doctor in their pocket. TimelyCare allows them to get help quickly.” TimelyCare launched for Merced College in February and roughly 300 students have signed up for the free service so far. “I’d be a happy person if we had 5,000 students already registered after eight months,” Muñoz said. “We’re far from that, but we’re way ahead of other institutions that have launched in the same timeframe.” Students can download the app onto their phones or access TimelyCare services through their Canvas portal or online. They use their school email address to register. Everyone is pushing to promote TimelyCare because they believe it can help students. Muñoz is working with area deans to have faculty share information about it in class. Monique Meza often serves as the TimelyCare cheerleader/advocate in real time as the Student Services Assistant at Student Health Services. “I ask anyone who walks in here if they know about TimelyCare,” Meza said. “Usually the answer is no, and then I launch into my spiel. ‘You’re entitled to use this service. It’s absolutely free virtual health and mental health care. It’s available 24/7.’ “Because maybe their stress is highest at 2 or 3 in the morning. Maybe they get sick overnight or they’re going through a difficult time. We have so many students without health insurance, and it’s amazing to see how relieved they are when we help them through TimelyCare.”