Make a New Year’s resolution: Boost your EAP
Make a New Year’s resolution: Boost your EAP
Health promotion professionals seeking to maximize New Year’s opportunities are remiss if they ignore their employee assistance programs (EAP), says Suzanne Mercure, manager of health programs for Rosemead, CA-based Southern California Edison, an Edison International power utility company.
"There is a need for the re-emphasis of behavioral health and EAP support programs," she notes. "The holiday period is also a high stress period when a lot of family issues come out. In addition, employees have had a bunch of time off, and now they have to go back to work."
At Cal Edison, Mercure’s staff is trying to work with employees just before the holidays because that’s when the added stress begins to build. "We make sure to include in our regular employee newsletter a targeted article, perhaps something like how to deal with a teen-ager, and reference whatever service fits EAP, work/family, or both," she explains. While communication with employees continues all year, "there is an emphasis around holidays in particular," Mercure observes.
When writing these articles, her staff try to think like the reader or user of information would think. "That’s how we put it in context," says Mercure. "There’s this event how does it play out? What means do I have to deal with it? Oh, there’s somebody right here who has the services I need!"
A number of holiday-related pressures can affect employees, notes Mercure. They may feel pressure to bring a turkey home, for example, while at the same time worrying about their jobs. "This can manifest itself in employees becoming harder to deal with, more tense, and quicker to react than they would perhaps be at other times of the year," Mercure says. "They may or may not show up for work on time. They might also be less attentive, so there are some productivity issues at play."
This is the time of year when emotional health can center around certain triggers, says Mercure. "If bad things happen, we remember them if they can be associated with something else," she explains. "For example, an employee might remember a romantic New Year’s Eve they shared with their spouse, from whom they are now divorced." People are not always aware of these triggers, says Mercure, so it’s important for EAP professionals to point them out and help employees deal with them.
While Cal Edison’s work/family support programs kick off at the end of December, Mercure says it’s critical to lay a strong foundation in the previous month. "You need to make sure that employees don’t fall into bad nutrition habits or stop exercising," she advises. Then, after the first of the year, she says, you can follow up with EAP and behavioral health programs.
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