NowServing by SeriousMD launches Care Gift Card for mental health consultations. This new feature went live in the NowServing app this June. Supporters can send PHP 1,000, PHP 1,500, or PHP 2,000, or a custom amount to their recipients. The recipient can redeem and apply the gift card for mental health doctor consultations for now.
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NowServing, one of the leading healthcare platforms in the country, has launched the Care Gift Card, a virtual gift card that lets someone pay for a loved one’s mental health consultation while leaving every decision about the care itself in the recipient’s hands. The card went live in the NowServing app this June.
The need is well documented. At least 3.6 million Filipinos live with a mental, neurological, or substance use disorder, according to the Department of Health’s National Prevalence Study. Yet care remains hard to reach. The Philippines has fewer than one psychiatrist for every 100,000 people, and stigma keeps many Filipinos from ever seeking help.
That’s the gap in mental health care, and this product aims to address it. The Care Gift Card was designed to hold both halves of the problem at once: it funds a loved one’s consultation, and it leaves the care itself entirely in the recipient’s hands.
“Many of our users told us they wanted a way to help a loved one get care without pressuring them or taking the choice out of their hands,” said Emille Armentia, Product Manager for the Care Gift Card at NowServing. “The gift card pays for the consultation. Everything else, the doctor, the timing, and the conversation, stays with the recipient.”
Supporters choose PHP 1,000, PHP 1,500, or PHP 2,000, or a custom amount from PHP 300 to PHP 3,500, then send the gift card from the NowServing app. Recipients receive an SMS prompting them to redeem the card in the app, where they can use it to book a consultation with a mental health professional whenever they are ready. More than 400 psychiatrists and psychologists are listed on NowServing.
While the supporter provides the fund, they can suggest a doctor, but the choice is still in the hands of the recipient. Furthermore, they won’t have any access to what is discussed in the session. They cannot even see whether the gift card has been used. The consultation stays entirely between the recipient and their doctor.
In other words, the gift funds care without attaching strings to it. Concern becomes something real, and the person receiving it keeps their privacy and their sense of control.
For now, the Care Gift Card can be used to book mental health professionals. The company may expand the card to other consultation types in the future. More information is available at the NowServing Care Gift Card for Mental Health website.