TogetherAll, an app launched by URI, is working to provide students with mental health resources at any time. PHOTO CREDIT: Hannah Charron | Staff Photographer
On March 8, the University of Rhode Island announced the launch of a new counseling app called Togetherall, providing students with a 24-hour virtual outlet to seek mental health support.
“The last year has been tough on all of us,” the University said in an email announcement. “Especially as a student, you may be feeling overwhelmed, struggling socially, or just not feeling like yourself.”
In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on the community, Togetherall gives students an alternative option that allows for peer-to-peer virtual contact. According to URI Counseling Center Director Cory Clark, having the option for students to interact with each other helps ease any potential stress when it comes to finding support.
“I think it’s great that we have it,” Clark said. “Some might have used it and it helped them, so now they’re helping others and being supportive of others. So it’s a great system, I think, to help support our students in a different way.”
The app also gives its users complete anonymity within chatrooms, which are monitored by certified clinicians and other professionals in the field of mental health.
Aiming to partner with a variety of different organizations, Togetherall itself has made its online services available for government, public health, and higher learning institutions since the company’s founding in 2007. Although the app was first offered at URI just over two weeks ago, Clark says the University has been working on getting the service approved for “about a year.”
“It took a lot longer to get approval for it [than expected],” he said. “We’re very excited that it is and that it’s come through at this time.”
According to Clark, one of the benefits that the Counseling Center has in offering virtual services is that they can benefit a diverse group of students. This is especially the case with international students or those traveling abroad, as he notes that Togetherall’s chat feature is available in about 20 languages.
Additionally, patients can continue to get counseling anywhere in the world, even while they are away at home or on vacation and away from campus.
“For students that are in different countries and might have a tougher time having access to supports, they would be able to access this peer-to-peer support network,” Clark said.
On top of the services the app provides, Togetherall also serves as an alternative to what is offered on campus at the Counseling Center. According to Clark, both entities work “hand-in-hand,” while the University’s announcement also states that the app “integrates the University’s existing campus counseling services.”
As for direct feedback from users on the app, Clark says they haven’t received any student responses yet this early on in the process, although that may change as time goes on. However, the Counseling Center has gotten “their response to the offering of the service.”
“I think a lot of students have been very positive and excited about the potential of using it and that the offering is there,” he said.
In terms of the future of Togetherall at URI, the Counseling Center will look at how the app can complement the services they offer on campus. They also plan to continue promoting the app online through QR codes and virtual fliers.
“We’re encouraging students to use it as a supplement to therapy or when they’re engaged with us,” Clark said.
Togetherall is free to download and is available to all users aged 16 and older. More information can be found on their website at togetherall.com.