Maintaining Work-Life Balance
Life is more than work.
“Sometimes other things effect their work life,” said Nancy Ritenour, human resource manager at Community Care Connections. “When you have resources, such as an EAP (Employee Assistance Program), it takes some of that stress off of you dealing with that work and home life.”
When a major event is thrown into life's mix — death in the family, job loss, child misbehavior, taking care of a parent — people need to have a safe place where they can get a new perspective and engage in self-care, said Carole Boes, employee assistance coordinator for Butler Health System.
“The chances of navigating life from birth to death without encountering a problem is virtually zero,” Boes said. “We're all in this together. You'd be surprised at who's willing to listen if you take the risk to reach out.”
Community Care Connections, 114 Skyline Drive, is among the companies that contract the Butler Health System's Employee Assistance Program.
The EAP features voluntary and confidential assessments and employer-sponsored counseling for short-term care.
“The whole idea with an EAP is to get to the problem before it gets out of hand,” said Boes, a licensed clinical social worker and certified employee assistance professional. “It gives people an easy access tool to get a hold of their stress quickly.”
An EAP gives employees access to resources and programs that will help them possibly deal with things going on in their life outside work from family to financial issues when they do not have the resources elsewhere, she said.
In 1985, the health system's EAP started in-house and by the 1990s, was offered to other companies. The programs has expanded coverage to workers' families, which is defined as anyone living in the employee's household.“Most of the time I would say people prefer to handle their problems on their own,” she said. “When they get to the place where they want to use their EAP, it's because the things they normally do to fix their problems just aren't working in the moment.”Short term counseling is solution focused, Boes said. When a person needs resources beyond the program, they refer and link them to other services.“Sometimes the problem's more involved,” she said. “We're not trying to replace a community resource.”The first appointment is an assessment and an opportunity for the patient to have the floor in a non-threatening environment.“It's basically to give the person an opportunity to say what got them interested in coming here,” she said. “As the session goes on, we'll know if they want additional help or if they want to be referred out.”From the first phone call, Boes lets them know what to expect.“I let them know they have the hour to talk. No contact, no names are released and no information goes back to their employer or boss about their case,” she said.Boes adheres to the same HIPA requirements as doctor offices.Others using the health system's EAP service include Butler County, Quality of Life Services and the Butler County Children's Center.Community Care Connections, which started in 1972, provides programs and services that empower children and adults with disabilities to live more safely and independently. The organization has contracted with the health system's EAP for a number of years.Ritenour said the agency pays for the service which covers its employees and their immediate family members. The organization has over 100 employees and 11 facilities, including its nine residential homes, corporate office and the center for the Golden Opportunities Adult Day Program on Whitestown Road.
Ritenour receives a report which details how many times the Butler Health System's EAP was contacted and for what areas,“We never know who it is,” she said. “It needs to remain confidential so they're more likely to reach out for that help.”An average of four employees reach out a month, she said, which could involve multiple sessions.Compared to the national average of about 8 percent to 10 percent of employees who access services on an annual basis, the Butler Health system averages are higher at 10 percent to 12 percent because of a familiarity with the resource, Boes said.The average is six to eight appointments for the BHS's EAP program in an open-ended format, which is different than other EAPs that cap visits at three to six appointments, she said.“Just because someone comes in doesn't mean they have to keep coming in,” she said.Referrals between friends are common.“A lot of times when you work with somebody, they'll share their troubles with you,” she said. “It's hard to know what to say. You don't want to say the wrong thing or make it worse.”Boes tries to see people within 72 hours of their contact.
Bereavement — coping with a death in the family — is an issue seen quite often at Community Care Connections, Ritenour said, adding finances, parenting and divorce are others.Primary relationships with a spouse, partner, boyfriend or girlfriend also are top reasons people reach out, Boes said. They also see people for anxiety and depression.Parenting stress is another issue that weighs on employees. Their children are exposed to more issues in the raising trend of social media platforms.In the second half of her time as coordinator, Boes has seen a shift from alcohol-related issues to substance abuse issues, she said. As a result, the number of resources, treatment programs and support has grown an she researches those options for people.
EAPs are important to the overall wellness of a company and its employees that work for it, Ritenour said.“You're in a better place to be a better worker,” she said.One trend in health is a push for self-improvement, Boes said.“People are more open than they used to be,” she said. “It's more acceptable than it was before, it's not hush, hush.”A person's emotional well-being is much a part of their physical health, Boes said.“You cannot separate the mind from the body,” she said. “Our focus is on improving strengths and wellness — There's really nothing scary about that. Everybody goes through different things in life.”
