Our blended care solution guides individuals back into everyday life after inpatient psychiatric treatment.
We connect crisis-experienced individuals with certified peers and psychologists via an intelligent platform. By creating personalized recovery profiles, we reduce relapses and provide a clear ROI for insurers while fighting stigma.
We address one of the most expensive systemic problems in the German healthcare system: the "multi-billion euro revolving door effect."
Every year, the chain of care breaks off after more than 850,000 inpatient psychiatric treatments. The result: One-third of patients suffer a relapse within a year, costing the system billions. At the same time, the stigmatization of severe mental illnesses leads to social isolation and resistance to therapy.
This is exactly where mentalhub comes in as a "hybrid operating system for recovery." We close this care gap with scalable, digital recovery programs that link directly to hospital discharge management systems.
The core of our approach is authentic, professionally supervised Peer Support. We connect affected individuals with certified Peer Support Specialists (Genesungsbegleiter). Through their own lived experience, they build a relationship of trust that traditional approaches often fail to achieve.
This human guidance is supported by an intelligent software solution that enables personalized accompaniment throughout the recovery process. Our programs are based on the scientifically established, person-centered CHIME recovery model.
For our partners in clinics, we offer a dashboard that enables seamless digital discharge management, anonymized monitoring of patient cohorts, and clear quality reporting to reduce readmission rates. Our approach is already being validated in a pilot program with the University Hospital Cologne and complies with S3 guidelines, which explicitly recommend peer support to strengthen the recovery process.
How did you get together as a team?
The impetus for mentalhub came from our founder, Bahtiyar Yilmaz. as the mastermind behind the idea, he draws his inspiration and unconditional drive from his own lived experience as a relative: his brother is affected by schizophrenia, which allowed Bahtiyar to witness the systemic gaps in care and social stigmatization up close.
To turn this vision into technology, Christian Steins (Software & IT) came on board. Christian is the pragmatic problem solver and implementer of our software solution. He is driven by his passion for societal transformation and the opportunity to use technology effectively to solve a pressing social problem.
Louisa Süß (Therapy & Community) completes the core team. As a psychological psychotherapist, she is the domain expert who develops our interventions and structured recovery programs based on scientific foundations and ensures the quality of our community.
The three of us found each other through different private and professional interests. What unites us is not only our absolute conviction in this product but a deeply shared vision: We are 100% mission-driven to make psychiatric aftercare in Germany sustainably more human and effective.
How did you come up with your idea?
The idea for mentalhub is a direct response to two forces: a strong personal
"Push" through lived experience and a clear "Pull" from
urgent systemic demand.
The "Push" came from our founder, Bahtiyar Yilmaz. As a relative, he
had to witness not only how his brother suffering from schizophrenia struggled
with the well-known care gap between inpatient and outpatient psychiatry,
but—more gravely—he realized that the real problem is stigmatization by the
system and society. This stigma leads to a lack of therapy acceptance and
insufficient continuity in treatment. At the same time, Bahtiyar experienced in
his private life the immense, empowering force that arises when people with
similar expertise come together instead of being socially and professionally
isolated.
These personal insights met a strong "Pull" from the healthcare
system:
Cost Pressure: Psychiatric hospitals are urgently looking for ways to save
costs and increase efficiency.
Skill Shortage: There is a disproportionate lack of specialists for the care of
people with severe mental illnesses.
Shift to Outpatient Care: There is strong evidence and political will to
organize care more on an outpatient basis.
What are you studying/working or what have you studied?
Our team combines expertise from three core areas:
Bahtiyar Yilmaz (Product & Business): Bahtiyar studied Mechanical Engineering at RWTH Aachen University, specializing in product design and development processes. Before founding mentalhub, he worked as a consultant in innovation and product management, including for renowned MedTech companies. He brings the methodological expertise for developing a scalable and user-centric product.
Christian Steins (Software & IT): Christian has been an entrepreneur since he was 16. He studied Software Engineering at the Hasso Plattner Institute in Potsdam and brings profound experience in building scalable platforms, including roles at providers like MeineStadt.de and in agricultural economics. He is the architect of our technical solution.
Louisa Süß (Therapy & Community): Louisa is a psychotherapist by conviction. During and after her studies and licensure, she gathered extensive experience in clinics and practices. There, she realized that people with severe and complex courses of illness often fail to arrive in the outpatient system. She believes in the power of group offerings, develops our evidence-based interventions, and wants to actively shape the healthcare system.
Funfact about your team or your start-up
A unique mix of Machine, Code, and Empathy
How has Gateway helped you? Why would you recommend us?
Working with the Gateway was a decisive accelerator for us. The greatest value lay in the access to extremely high-quality and perfectly curated knowledge. The workshops and the expertise of the respective workshop leaders helped us avoid typical pitfalls and sharpen our strategy enormously in a short time.
At least as important was the direct access to an excellent network and experienced coaches who stood by our side during critical strategic questions.
But what we would like to highlight in particular is the atmosphere. The Gateway is more than just a program; it is incredibly fun to be there. The workspace in the highly dynamic office and the daily, open exchange with other founding teams are priceless. You forge genuine connections with like-minded people who are going through exactly the same challenges.
We would recommend the Gateway without reservation at any time. It is the perfect combination of professional depth, a valuable network, and a genuine community.