Singapore 'Mindline at Work for MOE' mental health support
Mindline at Work is a digital system devised and run by Singapore's Ministry of Education (MOE) that aims to support and improve the mental health and wellbeing of Singaporeans in the workplace.
The system comprises a series of personalised mental health tools, exercises, and support resources, including access to the Wysa chatbot, which guides users in self-care and self-management exercises.
Criticism of the system focused on the perceived limitations of the Wysa chatbot, which users complain is unhelpful, lacks empathy, and can even be aggravating. Others felt it is little more than a 'one-size-fits-all programme' that struggles to meet teachers’ specific needs.
A number of MOE employees suggested the ministry should be focusing on the underlying problem of overwork, a demanding performance appraisal system, large classroom sizes, and uncapped working hours. Mental health, some teachers claim, is little more than a mere 'afterthought'.
Operator: Singapore Ministry of Education
Developer: Wysa
Country: Singapore
Sector: Govt - education; Govt - health
Purpose: Promote mental health
Technology: Chatbot; NLP/text analysis
Issue: Accuracy/reliability; Appropriateness/need; Effectiveness/value
Transparency: Black box; Marketing
System
Singapore Ministry of Education (2022). MINDLINE AT WORK FOR MOE
Research, advocacy
Inkster B., Sarda S., Subramanian V. (2018). An Empathy-Driven, Conversational Artificial Intelligence Agent (Wysa) for Digital Mental Well-Being: Real-World Data Evaluation Mixed-Methods Study
News, commentary, analysis
https://restofworld.org/2022/free-therapy-chatbots-singapore/
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/moe-chatbot-negative-reviews-1984976
https://www.reddit.com/r/singapore/comments/x3r9ya/the_previous_post_doesnt_fully_illustrate_how/
https://www.reddit.com/r/singapore/comments/y3pa63/chan_chun_sings_moe_is_critically_out_of_touch/
https://kuanyewism.com/2022/09/moes-new-emotional-support-portal-gaslights-teachers/
Page info
Type: System
Published: December 2022