09
April
2020
|
16:30 PM
America/New_York

Ohio State: Wellness app now on Android

App offers information and support to students, faculty and staff

The Ohio State University is making its app to support mental health and well-being more accessible to a larger audience.

The Ohio State: Wellness app is now available on Android devices. Beginning this week, users can now download the app on any Android or iOS device. For people using the app on an Android phone or tablet, the features and information are the same as the iOS version.

“The features themselves, they pair equally across both platforms. If Android displays news articles one way across the board, we try to apply those styles to Android versus iOS for a better user experience,” said Nick Rotonda, senior web and mobile developer in the Office of the Chief Information Officer. “The features themselves are pretty similar, but the way that the information gets displayed could be a little different.”

The wellness app is organized into sections to help locate useful resources:

  • “Explore” helps students find articles and information focused on student wellness.
  • “Support” offers resources for recovery and proactive wellness.
  • “My Wellness” enables tracking to support wellness goals.
  • “Crisis” offers directions for quickly accessing support.

Undergraduate, graduate and professional students at all campuses are the primary audience – thousands of them already received the app when it was sent to Digital Flagship iPads. Although designed for students, faculty and staff are encouraged to download and explore the app - most of the tips and guidance are useful for anyone.

The app was developed by students, faculty and staff following recommendations from the university’s Suicide and Mental Health Task Force. The app is a continuously updated source of information at a time when students, faculty and staff are facing new challenges as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“All of the different groups across campus who’ve been working on this project have been committed to provide these resources to all students across all platforms,” said Grace Buchholz, marketing and communications lead with Digital Flagship. “It’s especially important during these times, when we know this information is more needed than ever before. We have new content that we’re putting into the app every week to try to help students navigate the changes that are happening right now.”

Developing the app was a cross-institutional partnership between the Office of Distance Education and eLearning, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Suicide and Mental Health Task Force, Office of Student Life’s Counseling and Consultation Service and Student Wellness Center, Office of Institutional Equity, USG, the university’s Suicide Prevention Program, regional campus mental health services, Ohio Mental Health and Addiction Services and The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.

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