How Carelon Behavioral Health cultivates healthy work environments by supporting people leaders

What Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) do

The number of individuals taking advantage of the counseling provided by EAPs has been rising since the COVID-19 pandemic.¹ As these programs largely support behavioral health in the workplace as well as larger organizational issues, EAPs have a great opportunity to make a positive impact on organizations.

An EAP is a voluntary, work-based program that offers free and confidential assessments, short-term counseling, referrals, and follow-up services to employees who have personal or work-related problems.² EAP usage is associated with increased productivity, more engagement and life satisfaction, reduced absenteeism, and lessened workplace distress.³

Now that the pandemic has ended and individuals return to the office in growing numbers, EAPs have a greater chance than ever to make a lasting, substantive impact on work environments.
 

Carelon Behavioral Health’s EAP Organizational Services program

Carelon Behavioral Health (CBH) has been providing EAP services to organizations and their leaders for over 30 years. Through a dedicated team of licensed EAP workplace consultants, CBH seeks to support leaders in navigating the complex and evolving needs of their workforce.

EAP workplace consultants are available virtually and partner with every level of workplace leadership and staff, including managers, human resources personnel, senior directors, and C-suite executives.
 

What the program covers

The CBH EAP Organizational Services program covers a wide range of complex issues. “Everything we do begins with a consultation, which is the cornerstone of all effective interventions. Consultations consist of leaders talking through their challenges in real time via a dedicated phone line,” says Trevor Wilkerson, Director, Behavioral Health Programs and Services, Carelon Behavioral Health.

The consultants on the line help people leaders set a direction to go in. “Through a structured and interactive process, consultants help people leaders define the specific issue, the goals, and begin developing a plan for next steps,” explains Wilkerson.
 

Types of issues that arise

Consultants assist leaders with a wide variety of challenges; “Issues include individual employee concerns; referrals for employees struggling with personal stressors and work performance problems; and mandatory referrals for substance use issues or threats of violence,” Wilkerson explains.

After a consultation, a leader may request confirmation that the employee is engaging in the referred treatment, often arranged by EAP workplace consultants connecting employees to an EAP affiliate provider.
 

How referrals work

The EAP workplace consultants arrange the appointment on behalf of the employee. The consultants also communicate to the provider the specific nature of the referral, while planning for any additional follow-up or ongoing recommendations. If an employee needs a higher level of care, consultants will partner with the employee on navigating the process.

Consultants also stay in communication with the people leader after the EAP affiliate has treated the employee, providing feedback and recommendations on the employee’s further treatment options. “Consultants building professional relationships with people leaders, employees, and their treatment providers is essential to responding to individual situations that are impacting the work environment,” says Rebecca Keller, Manager of Behavioral Health Services, Carelon Behavioral Health.
 

Services the program provides

Carelon Behavioral Health EAP workplace consultants also coordinate disruptive event management and critical response services, typically for workplace issues that have affected multiple employees, such as the death of an employee or a natural disaster. After the consultative process, consultants help leaders and organizations address these issues further.

The consultative team coordinates end-to-end services, with ongoing follow-up to ensure all employees’ needs are met. Services are available 24/7, and consultants can arrange for counselors to meet with employees virtually or in person within two days, or on the same day for urgent requests.

The program also conducts and manages training sessions on topics such as resilience and suicide awareness via live on-site training, live webinars, prerecorded webinars, or video or audio podcasts. “Education and support are critical to helping people leaders address societal and workplace events that impact their employees, the workplace, and themselves,” notes Keller.
 

What sets the CBH EAP workplace consulting program apart

Wilkerson details what makes the CBH program unique. “We have depth of experience, and a high-touch concierge model as opposed to one that is more transactional. Our tight-knit team has decades of combined EAP experience, which is truly an asset within the industry. The result is an exceptional level of service for leaders and employees alike.”

He also emphasizes the adaptability of the program. “No two employer clients are the same, so we value a fully customizable program, rooted in well-established core services, that aligns with an organization’s unique culture and needs.”
 

How the program creates a solution

“We educate and equip leaders, employees, and providers,” concludes Keller. “Much of what we do is to support a healthy work environment. We help employers retain employees, and take some burden off managers and HR.”