Vivo Virtual Care to address depression among advisers

By Penny Pryor

Concerned by rising levels of stress and depression in the industry, MLC Life Insurance is making its Vivo Virtual Care Service available to advisers and their practice staff that partner with MLC Life Insurance.

Virtual Care provides a suite of services that include Doctors Online, a mental health navigator, a fitness consultant and a nutrition consultant.

The recent Australian Financial Advisers Wellbeing Report 2021 by Deakin University found that 73 per cent of planners experienced high levels of burnout from work, 67 per cent deal with some level of depression and 17 per cent were depressed most or all the time.

MLC Life Insurance general manager of retail distribution, Michael Downey, said they hoped the Vivo Virtual Care would help address these high levels of stress and concerning levels of depression amongst advisers.

"The changes we have seen in the past few years have sadly brought a huge mental health burden on advisers. Personally, I have spoken to many who want to leave the industry because things are simply too hard," he said.

"We're here to protect our customers, but we also have a responsibility to support the people who provide them with the vital advice that delivers that protection. Our experience shows Vivo can make a significant difference in people's lives, and we want advisers to access that too."