Employee Assistance Program

 

Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) are employee benefit programs offered by many employers, typically in conjunction with a health insurance plan. EAP are intended to help employees deal with personal problems that might adversely impact their work performance, health, and well being. Employee Assistance Programs generally include an assessment, short-term counseling and referral services for employees and their household members.

 

Employees and their household members may use EAP’s to help manage issues that could adversely impact their work and personal lives. Our EAP counselors provide assessment, support and if needed, referral to additional resources. Examples of issues for which EAP’s provide support include:

  * Substance Abuse

  * Financial or Legal Concerns

  * Family / Personal relationship issues

  * Work relationship issues

  * Health Care issues

  * Emotional distress

 

Stress Management Confidentiality is maintained in accordance with privacy laws and professional ethical standards. Employers sometimes do not know who is using their employee assistance programs, unless the proper release forms have been signed. In some circumstances, an employee may be advised by management to seek EAP assistance due to job performance or behavioral problems. This practice has been thought to raise concerns for some, who believe that the EAP may place the employer’s interest above the health and well-being of the employee. When this is done properly, both the employer and the employee benefit. In, fact, the goal of these supervisory referrals is to help the employee retain their job and get assistance for any problems or issues that may be impacting their performance. And, most importantly, any referrals for job performance issues or concerns are always confidential.

 

Employers Studies indicate that offering EAP’s may result in various benefits for employers, including lower medical costs, reduced turnover and absenteeism, and higher employee productivity and morale. EAP’s may also provide other services to employers, such as supervisory consultations, support to troubled work teams, training and education programs, and critical incident services. The broad array of services provided to employers by today’s EAP’s make a good business case for external programs. External EAP’s can provide more than just psychological counseling through the integration of a host of “work/life” resources. These kinds of resources can help employees wrestling with the associated demands of family, personal finances, legal problems, substance abuse, or the stresses of the work place. External EAP’s also provide the added benefit to employees of delivering confidential counseling services off-site, away from the eyes and ears of fellow workers, managers, or HR. EAP services are often paid for by employers, or many times is covered in the health care insurance plans. The EAP maintains a strict adherence to the concept of serving two clients; the employer and the employee. If the employee improves as a result of the use of this benefit, then both the employer and the employee are winners – the employer has a good, highly motivated and high-performing employee and the employee gains assistance with a personal problem that was previously impacting their ability to focus on their job.