Our Story
The Beginning
In 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Nimisha Vandan was conducting research on its impact across diverse communities in Hong Kong. Her findings revealed a silent crisis: mental health struggles were widespread, cutting across age, gender, ethnicity, and income — yet support was scarce.
Moved by this urgent need, she joined hands with Dr. Amit Wanchoo and Mr. Ameesh Kumar to create a space for healing and connection. OkayMinds — a digital initiative to make mental wellness accessible to all was started.
The first act of service was a virtual workshop for foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong, offering simple, practical tools to manage stress, anxiety, and fear. What began as a community response soon grew into a broader movement. OkayMinds expanded into both online and in-person education, delivering workshops, coaching, resources, and support to empower individuals and communities on their mental wellness journey.
Vision
A place where every mind feels safe, supported, and empowered to heal.
Mission
OkayMinds exists to support emotional well-being through empathy, education, and accessible tools — helping every individual feel seen, heard, and empowered to heal.
The TEAM
Dr Nimisha Vandan, Co-founder & Director
About Dr. Nimisha Vandan
Public Health Researcher | Certified Mental Health & Wellness Coach | Speaker & Educator
Dr. Nimisha Vandan is a public health researcher and certified mental health practitioner with a passion for advancing health equity and emotional well-being. She brings a unique blend of academic excellence, international experience, and holistic coaching to her work.
She served as a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, where she contributed to a global research initiative examining the impact of COVID-19 on public health systems in Canada, the UK, China, and Hong Kong.
Dr. Vandan holds a PhD in Public Health from The University of Hong Kong, where her research focused on patients’ experiences within the local healthcare system. She also earned a Master’s in International Health from The University of Tokyo, Japan. Her research has been published in several international peer-reviewed journals.
She is a recipient of the University Postgraduate Fellowship and Postgraduate Scholarship (2015–2019) from The University of Hong Kong.
Certifications & Expertise
Dr. Vandan is certified in:
- Mental Health First Aid
- Mental Health Literacy
- Mental Health and Wellness Practice
- Person-Centred Counselling
- Neurodiversity Coaching
- Menopause Coaching
- Ikigai Coaching
Her coaching and counselling approach is rooted in empathy, inclusivity, and empowerment—helping individuals navigate life transitions, improve mental well-being, and discover purpose.
Dr Amit Wanchoo, Co-founder
Trained as a medical doctor, Dr. Wanchoo has been actively organizing and engaging in various mental health programs. He is the CEO of SPACE COMMUNICATIONS, 1st Event
Management Company of Jammu and Kashmir, India. He is also the director of EATON LABORATORIES which is the first pharmaceutical manufacturing unit of Kashmir (India) actively involved in low cost healthcare. Dr. Wanchoo has blended health and entertainment in
healing and supporting mental health initiatives for people in Kashmir and other parts of India and has conducted innumerable mental health workshops in a span of last ten years for various
institutions.
He has utilized medicine, art and culture as an effective tool for generating mental well-being and has been involved in conducting and organizing various workshops on PTSD, mental
disorders and various other related fields. He has also worked with Medicine sans Frontiers in Kashmir (India) and was one of the first to be part of their initial workshops for mental health training in Conflict zones. He has been focused on better mental health, skill building and job
creation as modes of positive change. He has travelled widely around the Globe and has been fellow at leading schools and universities of the world including Yale, Harvard Kennedy School,
London School of Economics, and Asia Global Institute at The University of Hong Kong.