World Mental Health Day: How Innovation and Awareness Can Combat Depression in the Workplace

Today is World Mental Health Day, and this year’s theme is “Mental Health at Work,” which is highly relevant for our work at Autobahn developing new treatments for depression.?

Many people around the world are dealing with depression, no matter their success, status or socio-economic standing – so much so that a recent systematic?review ?of research concluded that “a substantial proportion of working professionals are suffering from depression of varying severity, regardless of their role in the respective workplace.”

The condition has a substantial effect on workplace productivity and employee performance. According to the?World Health Organization , 12 billion working days are lost annually due to depression and anxiety, costing the global economy $1 trillion from reduced productivity. And that’s not counting the personal toll that mental health issues have on individuals and their loved ones.

Thankfully, many companies recognize the importance of providing employees with resources to manage their mental health. For instance, a workplace?survey ?by Willis Towers Watson showed that 83% percent of employers offer coverage for telehealth behavioral services, and 70% provide dedicated onsite or virtual employee assistant program resources.?At Autobahn, we take pride in leading by example, offering our employees comprehensive resources and services to support their mental well-being.

On the therapeutic side, the development of new treatments for depression has been painfully slow, especially for the majority of patients who don’t get adequate relief from their existing medications. That’s why we are so passionate about advancing our pipeline of novel therapies for central nervous system conditions such as major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. At Autobahn, our mission is to improve life health for people affected by these disorders, by restoring the brain to a healthier state.?

To that end, we recently?initiated ?a?Phase 2 clinical trial for our?lead?therapy, ABX-002,?in?major depressive disorder and are preparing to initiate a second clinical trial of ABX-002 in bipolar disorder depression by the end of the year. We hope you follow us along on this journey.?

No one solution will eliminate depression, but by raising awareness, taking advantage of the resources available to us at the workplace and beyond, and continuing to advance new treatments, we can all help to bring relief to the hundreds of millions of people suffering from depression around the world.