Health, wellness, and productivity: best practice requires EAP involvement.

As the employee assistance field has evolved over the years and as employee and member assistance programs have become better integrated into their respective work organizations, the challenge of finding the right interface between the EAP, the health and wellness of the workforce, and the work organization has been at times controversial, while at other times it has contributed to profound programmatic innovations. While some EA professionals and employers have steered their EAP in the direction of a larger wellness thrust, others have preferred to maintain the distinctive flavor of the EAP and protect its confidentiality, arguing that an affinity with corporate health and wellness may compromise the very independence of the EAP itself.

Historically, health, wellness, and productivity issues for business and labor organizations have had a home in the EAP. The "parents" of EAPs, occupational alcoholism programs, developed out of a clear and present concern for the "health, wellness and productivity" of a visible and identifiable group of employees and labor members in the workplace--those suffering from alcoholism or alcohol abuse. Business and labor leaders recognized that the "wellness" of their organizations and of the overall workforce was being victimized by the deterioration in the health of the alcoholic employee and the often concurrent decline in his or her performance and productivity on the job. Many of the pioneering EAPs, in fact, were housed within corporate medical departments or the welfare offices of labor organizations.

EAPs continue to this day to play a vital role in health, wellness, and productivity, on both an individual employee level and in the larger context of the overall organization and its workforce. This role was validated in EAPA's work in 1998 when it convened a group of EA practitioners to develop an updated illustration of the interface between employee assistance and health care. As depicted in the accompanying portrayal of the many and varied services provided by EAPs beyond those of the EAP Core Technology, it is very evident that many of these services are intricately related and are major contributors to the health, wellness, and productivity of the organization, such as the following:

* Work/life programs;

* Disability and risk management;

* Health and safety programs;

* Wellness promotion;

* Welfare-to-work programs, retirement, and other job transitions;

* Child care and elder care services; and

* Critical incident stress management (and, more recently, disaster preparedness and response).

While certainly not exhaustive, this list bears out the fact that EAPs remain, to this day, on the cutting edge as potential and real contributors to the work organization's investment in its own health and productivity and that of its biggest asset--its employees and/or union members.

A GATEWAY AND OPPORTUNITIES

As EAPs continue to provide and enhance these multi-dimensional programs and services that are so much a part of the overall employee assistance effort, each one of us must also work to leverage these services against the EAP Core Technology itself. These services, which are built upon and directly address the health, wellness, and productivity of the organization and the workforce, will further solidify the value that our field brings to the individual employee and to the larger organization. The challenge remains, however, for EA professionals and for the overall EA field itself to document, validate, and communicate this value to the workforce and the overall work organization.

The varied services offered by EAPs provide EA professionals with numerous and diverse avenues to further integrate themselves into their respective work organizations. In so doing, they provide a gateway and opportunities to make a clear and compelling case for the current and ongoing role that the EAP plays in helping both employees and the organization remain vigilant of their health, wellness, and productivity issues.

The "best practices" of our services and their contribution to these critical dimensions are only "best practices" if we are able to articulate, defend, and position the EAP as a central player when it comes to any discussion about the health, wellness, and productivity of employees, union members, work groups, and the organization itself. As always, we want to hear about your best practices. What role is your EAP playing in addressing the health, wellness, and productivity issues of the organization or workforce? Have you implemented any innovative health, wellness, or productivity initiatives within your EAP?

We would very much like to hear about them and provide a possible forum for sharing them with your colleagues. Contact us at bern.beidel@ mail.house.gov or [e-mail] and let us know how you and your EAP are responding to this issue.

Bern Beidel and Kris Brennan are co-chairs of the Standards Subcommittee of the EAPA Professional Practices Committee.