MarinePALS has launched ‘MyMood’, a mental wellbeing self-check that enables seafarers to consider whether they need support without their individual answers or results being shared with their employer. Ship managers cannot view individual responses or results, and MarinePALS does not pass this information to the user’s employer.
Seafarers have a genuine struggle about reporting mental health issues to their employers or crew manning agents. They have heard stories from friends that seafarers are denied employment if they have returned home due to mental health issues.
Available through the MarinePALS digital learning platform, MyMood asks seafarers a short series of questions about how they are feeling. Their answers generate a colour-coded result indicating whether they may benefit from further support. Where users may need additional support, the platform provides information about the International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN), an international not-for-profit maritime organisation offering free, confidential, and multilingual assistance to seafarers and their families through its SeafarerHelp helpline.
The questions are based on a well-established and commonly used psychological test that measures the severity of emotional distress across three distinct subscales: depression, anxiety, and stress.
MyMood provides a confidential starting point for those who want to consider how they are coping but may not feel comfortable discussing their concerns at work.
Capt Pradeep Chawla, CEO of MarinePALS, said: “A seafarer may know they are not feeling right but still be reluctant to tell anyone. They could be worried about their next contract, or simply unsure how to explain what they are going through. I don’t want that worry to stop them getting help. We are asking people to answer personal questions about how they feel. Before they do that, they deserve to know who will see the answers. With MyMood, their individual answers and result do not go to their employer.
“When someone is having a difficult time at sea, they may be a long way from the people they would normally turn to. I want them to know there are organisations that can help them. They don’t have to wait until things get worse before asking for help.”
The launch adds wellbeing support to MarinePALS’ professional learning platform. MyMood is not a diagnostic or emergency service and does not replace professional care.