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Employee assistance programs required resources and manpower of various natures across different types of public sector organization. However, the current evaluation indexes and proportions of employee assistance programs in public sectors stipulated by the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration of the Taiwan’s Executive Yuan did not follow the rules, leading to a decreased efficiency in the subsequent execution of these assistance programs. Data analysis indicated that the weight and priorities associated with elements of evaluation criteria for employee assistance programs implemented by four types of public sector organization were not fully identical. For example, the aspect of health was prioritized in the group for the “Executive Yuan” organization type, and anxiety was the top element among these criteria. The group for the “municipal governments” and “county and city governments” organization type prioritized evaluation criteria for the aspect of work, and employee guidance was prioritized among the criteria. The organization type “others (mainly Assemblies)” also—as for the “municipal governments” and “county and city governments” groups—prioritized the evaluation criteria for the aspect of work; crisis management was deemed the most important element of the criteria. The results of this study suggested that, in terms of employee assistance programs, the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration of the Executive Yuan should provide an adequate system of service: This should be pursuant to appropriate employee assistance programs provided by various public sector organizations according to the needs of their employees as well as the diverse objective conditions in which these organizations operate.

Leidos, Inc. is a large government science and technology company. When a Leidos employee lost his son to an opioid overdose, he wrote an impassioned email to the CEO, asking him to take action related to the growing societal problem of opioid use disorders. The CEO understood and accepted this important call to action. Leidos’ subsequent efforts included supporting employees and families, as well as community outreach, eventually broadening to include mental health and well-being. This paper outlines the company’s efforts to combat opioid use disorders, understanding that they sit within a larger total worker health umbrella inclusive of mental health and well-being. The hope is that this ongoing journey and its exemplars are helpful for other organizations seeking to make an impact for their employees and society.

Chevron’s internal Employee Assistance Program and WorkLife Services (EAP/WL) group is comprised of a team of 12 advisors who provide on-site mental health and worklife support for employees, depen...

PurposeThis study investigates the relationship between police officer's willingness to use Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and their perceptions about stress and help-seeking in policing, considering the effect of gender and ethnicity in this association.Design/methodology/approachA survey of 431 Illinois police officers is used to measure officer's perceptions about help-seeking and organizational stressors. The conditional PROCESS modeling (Hayes, 2012) was employed to analyze the hypothesized mediation model. The ANOVA test was used to determent the effect of gender and ethnicity on organizational stressors in policing.FindingsFindings suggest police officer's willingness to use EAP is shaped by the perceived negative effect of stress on promotion through the mediator, confidence in their departments to receive adequate assistance, with noticeable gender and ethnic differences. The analysis demonstrated that female police officers feel stressed because of unfair promotional opportunities and poor relationships with supervisors. Female police officers are less willing to apply for the EAP services to mitigate stress than male police officers. The findings reveal that ethnicity is a significant predictor of the police officers' willingness to apply for EAP services to mitigate stress.Research limitations/implicationsThe current study is limited by its focus on only one police department located in the Illinois, USA. This may limit the generalizability of the results. The cross-sectional nature of data used to draw conclusions and variation in departments' characteristics and compositions could influence results.Practical implicationsThe research has practical implications for those who are interested to understand organizational stressors and perceptions on help-seeking in policing. This study provides suggestions for police administrators to make effort in creating more sensitive working environment to reduce stressors for female police officers and representatives of ethnic groups.Originality/valueThe research unveils the significance of officer's confidence in their departments in modifying their willingness to use EAP, revealing the effect of organizational stressors on confidence. The study adds empirical evidence to existing research on impact of gender and ethnicity on their willingness to use EAP.

Purpose of the study: This study aims to examine the impact of a psychoeducational module known as the ‘SELF-IE’ module in helping low-performing civil servants. It is measured through the self-change variables of emotional stability, psycho-spirituality, and behavioral adjustment among respondents, who attended 2017 Self-Change and Well-Being Programme that used the ‘SELF-IE’ module as the intervention. Methodology: This is a quasi-experimental study, in which the impact of the ‘SELF-IE’ module was determined by measuring the mean differences of the variables for both experimental and control groups. Data were collected from a total of 68 respondents using the Personal Well-Being Questionnaire (PWQ) consisting of 60 items divided into five different sections. Main Findings: There is a significant mean difference in all three measured variables (emotional stability, psycho-spirituality, and behavioral adjustment) between both experimental and control groups, which means that the intervention using the ‘SELF-IE’ module has a positive impact in self-change of the respondents in those variables. Applications of this study: The result of this study can provide useful information to help improve any self-development program for employees’ particularly in public organizational settings. The information should be beneficial for organizational counselors or industrial psychologists, and human resources or training managers. Novelty/Originality of this study: This study specifically enhances the human assessment performance in the Public Service Department (PSD), whereby the development of the ‘SELF-IE’ module has improved the current module used in public organizations’ employee assistance program (EAP).

Both workplace mental health and gender equity issues are in the spotlight in Canada as they are internationally. Accordingly, it is timely for Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) to systematically...

Background Men continue to be overrepresented in the Australian suicide statistics despite wide scale public health initiatives to improve men’s mental health literacy and to increase their help-seeking behaviour. Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) deliver free and confidential mental health support; however, their services are underutilised by men. In the absence of contemporary literature that explores end-user experiences of EAPs, we asked men from blue- and white-collar employment settings about the barriers and enablers to using EAP services and explored differences between employment settings. Methods Forty-four men participated in this qualitative study: 32 from one white-collar employer and 12 from one blue-collar employer. Two qualified mental health professionals facilitated five first-round and three second-round focus groups and one interview with white-collar workers, and two focus groups and three interviews with blue-collar workers. Data were thematically analysed using a framework approach. Results Four of the six main themes were barriers: no need for EAP—alternative supports; uncertainty of EAP services; scepticism and distrust of EAP; and societal and workplace cultures. Elements of enduring barriers to EAP use were contained within sub-themes. These included lack of knowledge about EAPs, issues of trustworthiness and confidentiality, and fear of stigma and career jeopardy. Enablers comprised the need for attractive, reliable messaging and proactive connections and service delivery. Differences within sub-themes for white-collar and blue-collar groups reflected the corporate nature of work and workplace culture for white-collar participants, and workers’ communication and practical problem resolution preferences for blue-collar workers. Conclusion Some elements identified in the barriers to EAP use are more entrenched than were previously estimated and these need to be a priority for action to increase confidence in EAP services by end-users. EAPs that have a visible and proactive presence in the workplace, that tailor their marketing and service delivery to different workgroups, that provide a competitive advantage to its service users, and more confidently conveys independence from its client organisations may help to increase men’s interest in accessing EAP support services. Further initiatives that reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and help-seeking both in society and the workplace are needed.

In this investigation, a quasi-experimental prospective evaluation employing a pretest–posttest control group design with propensity score matching estimated the causal impacts of a Canadia...

COVID-19, which also induced an economic downturn globally, has forced the organizations to suddenly implement remote working, creating many challenges for the employees. The fast spread of the virus may also create fear among the employees. It can have a detrimental impact on the mental well-being of employees. There exists inadequate research on this subject, which is not only new but also very important. The study aims to assess the impact of a sudden transition to remote working, economic downturn, and the fear of virus transmission on the mental well-being of employees in India, focusing on the triggers of anxiety & mental illness. The impact of anxiety-causing independent factors, including organizational support, worklife balance, isolation, fear of the virus, and recession, on mental well-being, was determined through a survey. The dependent factor, i.e., the severity of anxiety, was measured using GAD-7 questions. The independent factors were measured through structured questions. Statistical analysis of the data was carried out on SPSS. There were no significant differences in gender between severities of anxiety. Logistic regression revealed that Organizational Support significantly influenced the anxiety of employees. It was found that there exists a significant association between the severity of anxiety in Employee Assistance Program, Job Insecurity, Financial Impact, and Fear of getting the virus, Concern over Safety at Workplace, Home Environment and Deterioration in team collaboration., CARDIOMETRY, Выпуск 19 2021, Pages 78-89

In Chap. 8, we first describe general coping strategies (problem-focused coping, emotion-focused coping) that people use to cope with stress. We then present and discuss measures for stress avoidance, stress reduction, and the treatment of stress consequences, which can focus on the individual and his or her behavior or the organization and organizational conditions. Effective stress interventions are directed towards the individual and contain cognitive-behavioral elements, but combined organizational- and individual-level interventions can also have positive health-related effects. The effectiveness of organizational-level interventions depends on the quality of their implementation. Computer-based interventions have been shown to be effective but should be treated as an addition to rather than a substitute for traditional intervention methods.

Laboratory studies of empirically supported treatments (ESTs) for mental health problems achieve much higher rates of clinical improvement than has been observed following treatment in the community. This discrepancy is likely to due to limited reliance on ESTs by therapists outside of academia. Concerns about the generalizability of ESTs to patients in the community, who may have comorbid problems, likely limit rates of adoption. The present study examined the impact of ESTs delivered in the real-world for 1,256 adults who received services through an employee assistance program specializing in the delivery of ESTs. Rates of anxiety and depression decreased significantly, following treatment with an EST, and 898 (71.5%) patients demonstrated reliable improvement. Even among patients comorbid for depression and anxiety at baseline, over half reported reliable improvement in both disorders. Findings suggest ESTs can be effectively delivered outside of academic RCTs. However, additional research is needed to understand and overcome barriers to disseminating ESTs to the broader community.

Increasing productivity has always been an important issue in the context of management. Efforts in this direction are often demands that cause occupational stress, so that a counterproductive situation may occur. Quality of Work Life (QWL) is one of the hot issues that arise to neutralize stressful conditions by creating a more comfortable and more humane working climate. The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) as an intervention can be expected to function as a supporting system. The assessment was conducted for 67 employees. The questionnaire, interview, FGD, and SWOT analysis methods are used in all three stages, the pre-assessment stage, the assessment stage, and the intervention stage. From the Occupational Inventory Stress-Revised (Osipow, 1998), there are four most significant stressor areas and personal resources that are underutilized in managing stressors. The intervention program is directed at curative and preventive services through the EAP design.

Penelope J Slater,1 Rachel M Edwards,2 Ashraf A Badat1 1Oncology Services Group, Queensland Children’s Hospital, Brisbane, QLD, Australia; 2Nursing Learning and Workforce Development, Queensland Children’s Hospital, Brisbane, QLD, Australia Purpose: Challenges experienced by staff in the Oncology Services Group at Queensland Children’s Hospital led to issues with staff retention, well-being, and stress on team culture. Therefore, a customized program was developed through a needs analysis to improve the well-being and resilience of oncology staff, enabling them to cope with stressors and critical incidents inherent in their everyday work and to flourish. The program included education, on-site counselors, mindfulness sessions, debriefing, well-being resources, and improved engagement, support, and communication.Methods: Evaluation of the program in the first year examined program participation, staff feedback following education workshops and mindfulness sessions, staff retention rates, and the results of an annual organizational staff survey and a program outcome survey.Results: Approximately 76% of staff attended the Introduction to Well-being workshop, and 98% of responses to survey questions were positive. Staff also provided positive feedback on the other well-being workshops and sessions embedded within existing education programs. Employee Assistance Program counseling sessions had an 81% uptake, with a wide variety of presenting issues, 62% related to work. All participants in mindfulness sessions agreed that it was a valuable tool to improve clinical practice, 94% said it had an immediate positive impact on their well-being, and 70% agreed that they were applying mindfulness principles outside the sessions. Staff retention and turnover improved. Staff reported a positive effect on awareness of self-care, addressing risks to resilience, seeking support from trusted colleagues, coping with critical incidents, and the ability to interact positively with patients and families.Conclusion: The evaluation showed a positive impact on staff well-being. Although there was a wide variety of successful interventions reported in the literature, sustainability needs to be considered. Feedback on this program found that staff appreciated being listened to, valued, and supported through the strategies, and the ongoing program will continue to monitor staff needs and be responsive in building their resilience and well-being. Keywords: staff well-being, resilience, burnout, vicarious trauma, self-care&nbsp

Job stress is a top source of distress for many and one of the reasons why workers seek help through their Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Little is known about the prevalence of job str...

A quantitative study was carried out through an online survey (using Qualtrics) among South African Employee Assistance Program (EAP) practitioners/professionals in respect of their knowledge, atti...

I come from a long line of short-lived men. Although most of the women in my family live into their late 80s and 90s, the men mostly die before the age of 65. Almost invariably, consistent with heart disease being the leading cause of death in Nova Scotia (Statistics Canada, 2004), they die of coronary heart disease. I have the advantage, however, of being represented by a union and working for an employer that provides a comprehensive list of health care benefits. If, or when, my time comes to have a cardiac "incident" I know that my health care will be paid for, and that I will have access to every form of treatment and rehabilitation required. Moreover, I will use the resources without second thought and can reasonably expect that my colleagues and employers will support me in my journey back to health.The prevalence rate for depression in Nova Scotia is also high (Latham, 2012). If I develop symptoms of depression, once again my employer and union are there for me with a comprehensive set of benefits that includes the availability of an employee assistance program (EAP), provisions for short- and long-term disability leave if required and, of course, payment for psychological services. In this case, however, if I am like most employees I will not access these services. When it comes to mental health issues, the resources provided by organizations are typically underutilized (Linnan et al., 2008; Reynolds & Lehman, 2003). EAP programs, for example, are often underaccessed and underutilized (Canadian Medical Association, 2013). Moreover, the people who could often benefit the most from these resources are also the least likely to use them (Hunt & Eisenberg, 2010; Linnan et al., 2008).Dimoff and Kelloway (in press) suggested several potential reasons for this underutilization of organizational resources: (a) individuals may not recognize that they require a program, service, or resource; (b) individuals may not be aware of what resources are available; or (c) individuals may not use available resources because of other concerns or fears (e.g., stigma). There are signs that at least some of these conditions are changing and, indeed, I go as far as to claim that we currently have an unprecedented opportunity to substantially change the mental health of Canadians for the better. A variety of policy and economic factors have resulted in a "perfect storm" that is changing the organizational landscape with regard to mental health issues. In short, organizations in Canada are getting involved with mental issues to an unprecedented extent and this movement creates both an opportunity and a challenge for psychology as a profession.The Perfect StormOn a policy front, the storm has been brewing for a considerable time. Senator Michael Kirby began a series of investigations into Canadian health care with his initial report on the state of the health care system (Parliament of Canada, 2002). A subsequent report focused more specifically on mental health and mental health care in Canada (Parliament of Canada, 2006). Ultimately this work led to the creation of the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC). Now in its second funding mandate the MHCC has focused on workplace mental health and with their corporate partners (e.g., the Bell "Let's Talk" campaign) has done much to identify workplace mental health as an area ripe for intervention.In 2013, the MHCC partnered with the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) to issue CSA Z1003-a Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace (Canadian Standards Association, 2013). This is a voluntary management standard that provides guidance to organizations on how to develop a workplace mental health program-that is, the standard identifies what the authors believe are the core elements of such a program and the key considerations in implementing such a program. The MHCC has just completed the "case study" project in which 40 Canadian organizations agreed to serve as models during the implementation of the standard and to provide data on the process of implementing workplace mental health programs. …

Background Physician burnout is a serious, well-documented phenomenon that occurs at all levels of medical training that contributes to a higher incidence of suicide compared to age-matched peers. Surveyed students and residents ranked barriers to accessing care, which showed that time constraints (52%) were the primary barrier, followed by fear of retribution, and the stigma associated with mental illness. Aim The aims of the project are three-fold. 1. To decrease barriers and stigma preventing residents from obtaining mental healthcare; 2. Expose training physicians to the system of mental health resources prior to need; 3. Improve long term wellbeing through dedicated time and support for accessing mental health resources. Intervention A 5 question survey was administered to assess baseline attitudes toward counseling and knowledge about the Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Beginning January 2019, residents were provided at least 3 opportunities to schedule a “wellness check-in” with a counselor or psychologist during designated rotations throughout each training level. Time was free from clinical obligations and flexible for scheduling with advanced notice (2-3 weeks). A map of vetted providers in close proximity to the institution and detailed instructions EAP system access were provided prior to each rotation. Post surveys were distributed monthly. Results Baseline data revealed 49% of respondents knew where to find EAP resources compared to 62% post intervention. Over the 12-month pilot phase, 30% of eligible residents utilized the program. Of those who did not, three major barriers were noted: EAP system navigation (26%), provider availability (26%) and awareness of the program/time to schedule (22%). In addition, 5% more respondents rated counseling favorably compared to prior to the intervention. Of the respondents, 35% reported not feeling the need for an appointment. Conclusion and Next Steps As a result of the pilot phase, we have automated the notification system to send reminders 3, 2, and 1 month prior to an eligible rotation to increase awareness and time for scheduling. As a result of these interventions, we hope to increase utilization of the program, normalize counseling and decrease barriers to seeking mental health resources. Next steps also include expanding the vetted counselor map including reviews to increase the ease of making the first appointment.

Physician burnout is a national crisis with medicine among occupations with higher suicide risk, at 1.8 times the national average. Few pathology departments address this issue, and even fewer residency programs offer formal resiliency training. We implemented a high-stress environment resiliency strategy and an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-compliant curriculum to our residency program. Its purpose was to apply initiatives employed in the finance industry, then to measure their effectiveness. Utilizing methods from financial companies such as Goldman Sachs, we adopted the following initiatives in our residency program: (1) approach burnout as a dilemma requiring a tridimensional strategy: providing wellness training for the individual, programmatic group strategies, and an institutional wellness plan; (2) formalize a wellness curriculum, implementing wellness talks focused on stress prevention, management, and treatment; (3) offer free sessions with resilience coaches, psychological help, Employee Assistance Program, and chaplain services; (4) modify our mentorship program, pairing first-year residents with senior residents; (5) implement mindfulness practices; (6) provide easy access to volunteer opportunities and networking; (7) offer fitness center discounts. Effectiveness was measured through 2 surveys of 13 residents representing day 0 (before wellness initiatives were implemented) and at 1 year. Results indicate a significant improvement in utilization of wellness tools. This study demonstrates that wellness and resilience can be taught. Our ultimate goals are to increase wellness among pathology residents, to prepare them for a high-stress environment before entering the workforce, and to prepare them to incorporate the tools they have learned into their new workplaces.

Grief and traumatic grief in the workplace are significant issues that must be addressed by management. Management courses do not teach about grief, so it may be difficult for some managers to find a balance between organizational productivity and caring for the emotional well-being of employees. The regional coordinator for that area of the state proceeds forthwith to the residence of the surviving family. The program director goes to assist the family, while two other coordinators travel to the workplace of the deceased trooper to conduct debriefings and assist fellow troopers with their grief process. Many police personnel mistakenly believe that family members are somehow more prepared for their losses than civilian survivors. The organization, comprising individuals who are survivors themselves, remains an exemplary resource to any police counseling service or Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The EAP provides long-term follow-up care to the surviving family and co-workers, depending upon their wishes and needs.

This chapter illustrates how the EBP practice decision-making process is undertaken in Employee Assistance Program work with a Bethany, 32-year-old, biracial woman who has come to a sudden awareness of her early trauma history. Issues of assessment are addressed, and the six steps of the EBP process are each explored in detail. How EBP is done in practice is examined fully as it applies to the specifics of Bethany’s needs and strengths.

The Public Health Agency of Canada declared suicide a public health problem in Canada (2016). Employees working in correctional services, researchers find, experience high rates of life-time suicidal ideation in comparison to other public safety professionals and the general population. Suicide behaviours (i.e., ideation, planning, attempts, death) are a multifactorial phenomenon, explained in part by the Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide that suggests attempted suicide is facilitated by perceived burdensomeness, a lost sense of belonging, a feeling of hopelessness, and a progressively reduced fear of death, as well as capacity and planning to engage a lethal attempt. In the current study, we unpack the factors that can influence suicide behaviours as reported by correctional workers. Our intent is to make explicit the experiences of a small sample (n = 25) of correctional workers in relation to suicidal behaviours, highlighting stories of recovery and acknowledging the importance of facilitating psychologically safe workplaces. Analysis entailed an inductive semi-grounded emergent theme approach. Participants identified certain risk factors as being able to induce suicidal ideation, such as marital or family problems as well as difficulties at work (i.e., bullying or difficult working conditions). Having children and a partner may act as factors preventing suicide for those with ideation. Participants sought help from professionals, such as their family doctor, a psychologist, or the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), however, the lack of perceived organisational supports and recognition of the issue of suicide by the employer are two elements that can hinder the search for help.

The definition of an employee assistance program (EAP) varies depending on where in the world the EAP is functioning, what standards are being applied, the nature of the services offered, and the country in which the EAP operates. In general, regardless of the location, type, and model, an effective EAP program serves two clients: the work organization and the individual employee. An EAP is “a professional assessment/referral and/or short-term counseling service offered to employees with alcohol, drug, or mental health problems that may affect their jobs” (Masi (2011) Definition and history of employee assistance programs in correct Understanding and application of EAP necessary for all entities that implement measures for mental health. Kabushiki Kaisha Roudou, Tokyo, Japan. Retrieved 11 Aug 2017). As the EAP field has developed, many EAPs are now much more broad-based with an emphasis on variety of problems that may affect work/life balance including parent/child issues, family concerns, legal concerns, and financial concerns. The point of access for EAP's has also changed as EAP's have evolved. Previously, EAPs were accessed primarily by a supervisor referral. At present, EAPs are still accessed in this manner but also by employee self-referrals.

Motivating alcohol abusers to enter treatment, comply with recommendations, and make significant changes in their behavior is no easy task. In the West, professionals learned the importance of motivation early on, and they learned it first from those recovering in Alcoholics Anonymous. Early occupational alcoholism programs used job performance and disciplinary steps to motivate problem drinkers to take action. The threat of job loss proved significant in breaking through denial and in motivating clients to begin a recovery process. This approach was incorporated into the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and EAP professionals have used job performance and disciplinary steps to motivate those with many types of personal issues. In the Russian Federation, no such history exists. This workplace-based alcohol intervention program is a first for Russia, and it uses the work performance approach successfully deployed in the West for many decades.

This study examines if and to what degree an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) intervention improves Chinese employees’ workplace functioning. The sample included 670 employees from 26 local and multinational companies in China who received EAP counseling. The Chinese translation of the Workplace Outcome Suite-Short Version, a five-item outcome assessment instrument, was used as a pre/post measure. Four of the five items showed significant improvements from the pre- to posttest. The effect sizes on the items varied, indicating that EAP produced different levels of impact on dimensions of workplace functioning. Future research should examine the influences of different EAP models, client organizations, and dimensions of workplace functioning.

1. First Nations, Maori, American Indians, and Native Hawaiians as Sovereigns: EAP with Indigenous Nations Within Nations Rodney C. Haring, Maui Hudson, Louisa Erickson, Maila Taualii, and Bonnie Freeman 2. Employee Assistance Programs in Australia: Evaluating Success Robert-Leigh Compton and John G. McManus 3. Using an Interactive Self-Assessment Tool to Strengthen Your Employee Assistance Service Liliana Dias, Audrey Eertmans, Inge Van den Brande, Yasmin Handaja, Sofie Taeymans, and Debora Vansteenwegen 4. Evaluating EAP Counseling in the Chinese Workplace: A Study with a Brief Instrument Peizhong Li, David A. Sharar, Richard Lennox, and Wei Zhuang 5. Eureka: An Employee Services Perception Study in Continental Europe Debora Vansteenwegen, Manuel Sommer, Dirk Antonissen, Tito Laneiro, and Odete Nunes 6. Innovative Career Support Services for Professional Women in India: Pathways to Success Beverly Younger, Kalpana Tatavarti, Neeti Poorswani, Denice Gordon-Mandel, Caitlin Hannon, Ikiah K. McGowan, and Gokul Mandayam 7. A Substance Abuse Intervention Program at a Large Russian Manufacturing Worksite Kenneth Burgess, Richard Lennox, David A. Sharar, and Alexander Shtoulman 8. Pricing Models of Employee Assistance Programs: Experiences of Corporate Clients Serviced by a Leading Employee Assistance Program Service Provider in South Africa Neliswa A. Cekiso and Lorens S. Terblanche 9. The Effects of Psychosocial Problems on Employee's Stress, Self-Esteem, and Organizational Commitment: The Case of South Korean Workplaces Soochan Choi, Jeongeun Lee, and Haewoong Park 10. Response to the Challenge of Training International EAP Professionals: An Online Certificate Program Dale A. Masi and Kent Carlson 11. Group Characteristics and Mental Health of Chinese Expatriates in Africa and Central Asia: A Multisite, Multiyear Study Peizhong Li, David A. Sharar, and Jie Zhang

Defining the Problem A growing body of evidence highlights the need for wellness programs to support health care professionals. Although much of the existing literature centers on practicing physicians and physician trainees, there is growing awareness that these challenges are not unique to physicians and affect all members of the health care team. Traumatic and stressful events will always be a part of health care; how these events are addressed on a personal and team level is essential to the success of a health care system. A Resiliency Center was developed on the basis of the specific concerns and strengths of local stakeholders to support the well-being of employees at University of Utah Health. Initial Approach The initial approach to evaluating and supporting faculty wellness began concurrent with planning for the Resiliency Center in 2016. Stakeholders were brought together by leaders in Health Sciences to propose a Resiliency Center. Initial data gathering was performed with several survey tools, including the American Medical Association's Mini Z. Planned Initiatives The Resiliency Center, which is housed in the Office of Wellness and Integrative Health, is intended to serve as an overarching structure to help coordinate the faculty and staff wellness initiatives currently in existence and fill identified gaps. The four pillars of the Center are wellness initiatives, communication skills training, peer support, and an on-site Employee Assistance Program. Next Steps The current focus is on program development and outreach, with plans to measure the impact of the Center.

Protecting employees, visitors, and customers is critical to the success of any business. Creating a safe and secure work environment and hiring trustworthy employees create the foundation for good personnel security. Both can be accomplished by having in place preemployment and background investigation (BI) processes, a workplace violence prevention program (WPVPP), and an effective means of responding to situations of workplace violence. It is also a key factor in the International Widget Corporation (IWC) Corporate Assets Protection Program. A preemployment BI process that subjects all new hires to a prehire review is an essential tool in assessing the trustworthiness of potential and future employees. Conducted in a consistent manner and in accordance with all applicable nation-states’ laws, this process will provide basic background information which, together with a candidate interview process, can help IWC management weed out potential bad employees. This process also includes a provision to conduct extended BIs for persons entering into very sensitive positions, either as new hires or as current employees being promoted. Establishing a WPVPP will help to create a safer and more secure work environment. The essential elements of an effective program are: ▪ Having in place a zero-tolerance policy ▪ Conducting effective preemployment BIs ▪ Formal grievance procedures for all employees to use ▪ Formal initial and recurring workplace violence prevention training for all employees ▪ An employee assistance program to help employees deal with serious personal problems ▪ Outplacement services for those employees displaced from the company

Quality of Work Life as a contemporary perspective on HRM is related to meaningful, satisfying, and effective work environment that meets with the organizational and personal needs. Moreover, having quality of work life will lead to better well being of the workers and society. This 3 years long study was conducted at a steel company in East Java, Indonesia. The first year aimed to get base line data problems that arise in the organization using the concept of Quality of Work Life of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (EWON, 2002), which has 5 dimension, i.e health and wellbeing, work and non-work life balance, job security, job satisfaction, and competency development. Focus group discussion and SWOT analysis was conducted based on these data to get an overview of the problems. Several programs and systems were set up as an intervention of the existing problems in order to improve the Quality of Work Life, such as organizational development and change management, training of professionalism, stress management, leadership training, while the system set up were Employee Assistance Program, work load analysis, remuneration system, talent management, and career path. With this action research design, these programs were expected to give benefit both to the management and the workers. It is expected that all of the efforts will have an impact on improving the quality of industrial relations, increasing employee productivity and performance, as well as improving the quality of life for all members of the organization

Past research has documented that non-behavioral variables (such as long work hours, exposure to police stressors) are associated with obesity risk in police officers, but limited research has examined behavioral variables that might be targeted by Employee Assistance Programs for police weight management. The present study compared non-obese and obese officers for behav- ioral variables found associated with obesity in other adult samples: physical activity (cardiovascular, strength-training, stretching), sleep duration, and consumption of alcohol, fruit and vegetables, and snack foods. Participants included 172 male police officers who completed questionnaires to report height and weight, used to calculate body mass index (BMI = kg/m 2 ) and to divide them into "non- obese" and "obese" groups. They also reported the above behaviors and six non-behavioral vari- ables found associated with obesity risk: age, health problems, family support, police work hours, police stressors, police support. ANCOVAs compared each behavioral variable across obesity status (non-obese, obese), with the six non-behavioral variables used as covariates. Results revealed that cardiovascular and strength-training physical activity were the only behavioral variables that dif- fered significantly between non-obese and obese police officers. The use of self-reported height and weight values may provide Employee Assistance Program with improved cost, time, and officer participation.

The main objective of this exploratory, empirical study of qualitative nature is to shed light on organizational practices that encourage people's return to work after the loss of an unborn child or infant. The literature in human resources does not focus on the specific issue of perinatal loss in a context of returning to work. In fact, to examine the issue, one must turn to studies concerning the return-to-work process after other kinds of personal problems. When returning to work after the loss of an unborn child or infant, parents are often still in the early stages of the "grieving process." However, organizations rarely support parents when they return to work. This is why our study targets key organizational practices used when employees experiencing perinatal loss return to work. In order to explore these elements, three discussion groups were held with women who lost their unborn child or infant. Content analysis enabled us to conclude the factor that appears to be more crucial to a successful return to work is the support provided by organizations through various practices, of which the most important are access to an employee assistance program, outside help, and appropriate working arrangements.

Background Employee assistance programs (EAPs) are responsible for helping employees cope with problems such as: mental distress, alcoholism and other drug dependencies, marital and financial difficulties--in short, the whole host of personal and family troubles endemic to the human condition. Objective The study explored the challenges that employees who abuse substances experience when returning to work after the completion of an employee assistance program. Methods The study used a qualitative exploratory descriptive research design. Three male participants and two key informants participated in the study. One semi structured interview was conducted with each one of the participants and one semi structured interview with the key informants. Results Four themes emerged: 1) Loss of one's worker role identity, 2) Negative influences of the community continues to effect the success of EAP, 3) EAP as a vehicle for change and, 4) Healthy occupations strengthen EAP. Conclusions This study portrayed the following: how substance abuse effect the worker role of individuals employed in the open labor market, the challenges and facilitators experienced by employees who abuse substances when returning to their previous work roles and how occupation based interventions can be incorporated in EAP programs. Occupational therapists could use the health promotion approach, work simplification, energy conservation techniques and ergonomic analysis techniques.

To determine the prevalence and characteristics of clients with depression attending an employee assistance program (EAP).Anonymized data were obtained from 10,794 consecutive clients, including 9105 employees, self-referred to PPC Canada, a large, external EAP. Assessment measures included the self-rated nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Clinical characteristics of depressed clients (PHQ-9 score ≥ 10) were compared with those of nondepressed clients.Thirty-seven percent of the employee sample met PHQ-9 criteria for clinically significant depression. Compared with clients without depression, they had significantly higher rates of anxiety, psychotropic medication use, problem substance use, global problems with functioning, absenteeism, impairment in work-related tasks, and low job satisfaction.A large proportion of EAP clients were clinically depressed with associated negative effects on personal and occupational functioning.

As part of a quality improvement initiative, counseling outcomes were reviewed at a Department of Defense employee assistance program (EAP). One hundred clients completed a self-report instrument, the Outcome Questionnaire 45.2, prior to their intake interview and again prior to their last counseling session. Counselors rated the clients on the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale immediately after the intake interview and again at case closing. In the closing summary, counselors also rated each client's perceived level of improvement on the major goals established at the beginning of counseling. The majority of clients reported less overall dysfunction (86%), less subjective distress (79%), better interpersonal relations (68%), and better functioning at work (68%) at case closing than at intake. Results on the counselor-completed scale of perceived improvement were very similar to client self-ratings. The GAF showed somewhat less sensitivity to change in general and deterioration in particular. T...

Despite the increasing need for employee assistance program (EAP) providers and human resources (HR) departments to demonstrate outcomes resulting from the availability and use of EAP services, few empirical studies have examined the relationship between EAP utilization and objective organizational outcome measures. This study made use of a unique longitudinal archival data set to examine EAP utilization, the problems for which help was sought, and the relationship of EAP utilization to absenteeism over 3 consecutive years among all EAP-eligible (N 3,448) employees in all locations of a large national Canadian retail store. Patterns of usage were examined by gender and age with a clearly defined EAP utilization statistic. Most frequently, the reasons for help seeking were personal issues, marital/family problems, and (a distant third) work-related issues. Longitudinal hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to examine the differences in yearly absentee hours between EAP users versus non-EAP users. The results showed that EAP users generally had higher rates of absenteeism than nonusers during the year in which EAP was used but (with some exceptions) did not differ from the non-EAP user groups in the year(s) before and after treatment. Implications for consulting psychology are suggested.

Demonstrating outcomes and highlighting the value of employee assistance (EA) services are critical, especially in today's difficult economic climate. This study reports findings from an exploratory study of Employee Assistance Program (EAP) outcomes using existing EAP case files from 20 different U.S. employers. Research questions examined the effects of EAP services as measured by three commonly used indices: the Level of Functioning Scales at Home and at Work, and the Global Assessment of Functioning. Significant changes in scores on all three measures were found at posttest, suggesting an overall positive affect from employee participation in EAP services. Recommendations for EAPs with little to no resources for research and limited experience with research are discussed.

Practicing medicine is stressful, and it is becoming more so as the health care environment continues to change and evolve. However, physicians are not very good at taking care of themselves. Studies have shown that substantial percentages have no primary care physician themselves. There are also significant real and perceived barriers to seeking help for mental and behavioral issues, resulting in many physicians not getting the help that they need. The need for providing assistance in the mental and behavioral health area for physicians has never been greater, yet their use of traditional employee assistance programs is far less than that of other members of such programs because of a variety of factors. This article goes into more depth about the issues and provides case studies illustrating promising outcomes.

Stress is unavoidable part of an employee in one organization. There are reasons why employees having stress at work. Stress is a contraction when somebody feels one problem has threatened himself. There are kinds of stress kind, like hypo-stress, eu-stress, hyper-stress, and distress. Stress sources in working environment are environment factors, organizational stressor, group stressor, and individual stressor. Besides, there are also factors caused working stresses like biologic, social/cultural, psychodynamic, rational, experiential, and spiritual. After defining sources and factors from working stress, there are ways to overcome them which the organization should do to help the employees; like peer counseling or peer support group, in-house support, employee assistance program, and mediation facility; which will reduce employees’ stressful at work.

This research explores the reasons that employed adult women (N = 760), living in the United States, who experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) contacted the Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Women who contacted their EAP most often sought counseling or referrals for mental health or legal services. Most women who contacted their EAP did so because they did not know where to turn for help, gained access to an EAP, or were encouraged by a workplace manager/supervisor of family/friend. These results suggest that EAPs should work closely with workplace supervisors/managers and employees to provide information regarding EAP access and available resources.

This article describes the development and validation of a five-item scale Workplace Outcome Suite designed as an open access instrument aimed at facilitating empirical research on Employee Assistance Program (EAP) interventions. The suite contains five-item measures of absenteeism, presenteeism, work engagement, life satisfaction, and workplace distress. All but the absenteeism measures are effect-indicator structures derived from classical psychometric theory. The absenteeism measure used a formative model that captures the individual components of being away from the job site because of personal problems. These components are not thought to be internally consistent with one another but rather represent distinct manners that force time off. Two separate validation studies of the suite, one with a paper-and-pencil modality (N = 220) and another with a telephone interview modality (N = 228) tested the reliability of the scales, the structural validity of the items, and the construct validity of the unit-w...

Member Assistance Programs (MAPs) are peer-based Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) that originated in the United States and have been transferred to other countries. The current case study aims at exploring the cross-cultural transferability of MAPs by comparing the first MAP established in Israel with the prototypical American program. The observed differences are explained on the basis of cross-cultural organizational theory. In addition, empirically-testable hypotheses regarding the cross-cultural variations of MAPs are developed. The implications for EAP and MAP research and practice are discussed.

This study was aimed at exploring the roles of self-efficacy and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) in employee burnout associated with stress. A total of 600 questionnaires were sent and 205 were collected from employees in high-tech industries in a Science Park in Taiwan. The valid collection rate was 34.2%. Path analysis was used to test the model. The results show that stressors can negatively and indirectly influence burnout through self-efficacy. This finding means that companies trying to reduce employee burnout should pay much more attention to enhancement of employee self-efficacy. Implications for application and future research are discussed.

Air Medical Journal 28:2 Being exposed to human suffering on a frequent basis can take its toll on air medical program staff, resulting in “burnout,” a feeling of being overwhelmed, or loss of empathy and compassion. Puchalski1 noted that, over time, “our exposure to suffering and the existential questions that arise from suffering may lead to a spiritual or philosophical growth, or it may result in ‘gradual wearing down of the spirit.’”1 To avoid losing valued staff to burnout and frustration, the program implemented a flight chaplaincy program. The initial goal, which was expanded later, was “to reduce staff emotional stress by providing crewmembers an opportunity to express their emotions to a nonjudgmental chaplain experienced in working with people in distress.” The need for the chaplaincy program was identified by program leadership (program director, medical director, and clinical supervisors). They were aware of troubling transports that crewmembers experienced and heard them report not sleeping well, difficulty moving beyond a particular patient situation, and being distracted at home by thoughts about patients and their families. Leadership recognized that it had responsibility for “supervising and evaluating the quality of medical care provided by the program’s medical personnel” as required by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Services standards.2 In addition, program leaders recognized that the delivery of quality critical care depends not only on knowledge and experience, but on healthy emotional reactions to the more difficult aspects of the job. The program’s crewmembers encounter and care for patients who are dying or undergoing major life changes that are not of their choosing. The program has neonatal/pediatric and adult transport teams and specialty services, including an extensive mountain rescue program and avalanche rescue, nitric oxide transports, and high-risk obstetric transports. The program’s critical care transport personnel share personality traits of having high standards and the need to appear calm and in control. Because of their self-expectations, clinical crew may be reluctant to approach their supervisors for fear of appearing incompetent or “out of control.” The sponsoring hospital’s Employee Assistance Program, although excellent, was perceived as the last refuge for the emotionally devastated, rather than consisA Flight Chaplain

SUMMARY This article reports data on increased work productivity resulting from the employee assistance program (EAP) treatment of employees. Participants (N = 155) had various psychiatric diagnoses and were seen in individual counseling by network clinicians. Measures of “presenteeism,” absenteeism, and degree of problem resolution were obtained from members' ratings. The results indicated that 80% of costs associated with lost productivity was associated with presenteeism, with absenteeism accounting for the remainder. Characteristics associated with lost productivity were energy level, concentration, and work quantity/quality. A return on investment (ROI) calculated using these data in a typical EAP indicated that for every dollar spent for the program, there is an expected return of between $5.17 and $6.47.

This research examined the independent and combined influence of workgroup drinking norms and safety climate on the cognitive outcomes of prevention. Employees from 72 workgroups (n = 347) were randomly assigned to attend 1 of 2 training conditions or a control group that did not receive training until after follow-up questionnaires. Results from hierarchical regression analyses showed there was a significant effect of the interaction between safety climate, drinking norms, and training on beliefs that policy and the employee assistance program are effective. Informational training was least effective for employees from relatively temperate workgroups. Team awareness was less effective for employees from tolerant groups. Employees might benefit more from interventions tailored to individual and workgroup cultural factors.