A new kind of Employee Assistance Program (EAP) focused on behavioral health and mental wellbeing 

Toronto — October 4, 2022 — NexJ Health Inc. (“NexJ Health”), provider of polychronic disease management and mental wellbeing solutions, today announced that University of California San Diego Health (UCSDH), repeatedly ranked the number one health care system in San Diego, is partnering with NexJ Health to implement a behavioral health coaching program for their employees and patients of their health system. 

This project is an outcome of NexJ Health’s US go-to-market strategy and is based on published evidence developed in trial at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and demonstrated with the Canadian Armed Forces.   

Participants who have scored mild-to-moderate on a Patient Health Questionnaire called the PHQ-9, will be referred by their physician to the program. UCSDH’s Population Health social workers will facilitate onboarding onto NexJ Connected Wellness, where participants will be matched with a NexJ Health Coach who will support them with positive lifestyle behavior changes and cognitive behavioral therapy. Social workers will be available to refer participants back to UCSDH mental health resources as needed, including psychiatric and psychological support.  

In this new type of EAP, health coaches promote positive health behaviors through applied motivational interviewing and structured goal setting in one-on-one health coaching sessions to drive sustainable behavior change. The program will enable participants to engage in healthy behaviors to improve diet and nutrition, physical activity, sleep, mindfulness, medication adherence, and manage their overall health and wellbeing. The program aims to reduce depression symptoms and burnout and improve quality of life. 

The behavioral health coaching program is a scalable solution to support and engage UCSDH’s employees and patients with mild-to-moderate mental health needs, so UCSDH can focus their resources on individuals with the most severe mental health needs, ultimately leading to increased access to mental health care across the population, and a more manageable workload for clinicians.    

“We are very excited about delivering our evidence-based intervention that takes a polychronic approach to supporting individuals with their behavioral health needs, while also opening capacity for UCSDH practitioners to spend more time with higher needs individuals within their health system,” said Daniela Liggio, President of NexJ Health. “It’s a tremendous outcome of our U.S. go-to-market strategy and vision for the company.” 

About NexJ Health Inc. 
NexJ Health Inc. is a provider of patient-facing population health management solutions that deliver patient engagement for chronic disease prevention and management. At NexJ Health, we believe that the most efficient and cost-effective way to offset the rise in chronic disease is to empower patients, with the support of their families, friends, and healthcare professionals, to actively participate in managing their own chronic condition(s). By engaging patients through NexJ Connected Wellness, we help to achieve healthcare’s 5-part aim: improve the patient experience, improve population health, lower the per capita cost of care, increase provider satisfaction, and deliver business efficiency. For more information about NexJ Health visit www.nexjhealth.com, e-mail info@nexjhealth.com, or call 416-227-3700. 

About UC San Diego Health 

As the region’s only academic health system, UC San Diego Health is dedicated to delivering outstanding patient care through commitment to the community, groundbreaking research and inspired teaching. UC San Diego Health includes UC San Diego Medical Center in Hillcrest and Jacobs Medical Center, Moores Cancer Center, Shiley Eye Institute, Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center and Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute, all in La Jolla, as well as other primary and specialty practices located throughout Southern California. For more information, visit www.health.ucsd.edu. 

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