Nearly 80% of Hong Kong execs experience mental health issues: survey

Top execs plan to increase spending for medical insurance in the next 12 months.

A total of 78% of Hong Kong executives have admitted to experiencing mental health symptoms over the past 12 months, the majority of whom cited anxiety.

Around 58% of executives in the city said they experienced anxiety, higher than 29% in China.

Some 45.5% in Hong Kong suffered from disturbed sleep and 39% lacked energy or felt fatigued. This is also higher than 37.5% in both issues, recorded in China.

Around 2% of Hong Kong executives have experienced hallucinations and 4.5% have had thoughts about hurting themselves or others.

The major kinds of worries keeping them up at night are business uncertainty (61%) and facing tough decisions at work (60.5%).

“The 2021 Bupa Global Wellbeing Index has revealed an increasing awareness of mental health and wellbeing amongst senior executives in Hong Kong and China,” Bupa Global Marketing and Consumer Sales Director Neil Kirby said.  

“It is encouraging to see that despite prevailing health challenges and pressures, leaders are taking a more proactive approach to care for their own wellbeing.”

More Hong Kong top executives are open to addressing mental health issues with 52.5%, compared to 36.5% in China.

Moreover, one in 10 sought help for their mental health from their insurer.

Despite health being one of their leading priorities, top executives in Hong Kong and China allocate an average budget of just 8.3% to healthcare and medical protection, a spending level lower than other tangible items, such as entertainment-related activities (10.2%) and fashion/luxury goods (13.4%).

Over the next 12 months, 54.5% of Hong Kong top executives/HNWIs will increase spending on medical insurance plans, up 25.9% compared to the same study in 2020. They intend to spend 12.4% more on self-funded private medical insurance.