Linking individual and organizational wellness

In addition to intervening when workers have substance abuse or stress problems, many hospital employee assistance programs (EAPs) now include a wellness component that emphasizes prevention and organizational wholeness. The EAP at St. Joseph's Hospital & Medical Center, Paterson, NJ, has taken a number of steps to improve its responsiveness to employees' needs and promote constructive organizational changes. To meet increasing requests for mental health services, St. Joseph's EAP implemented a short-term (up to 12 sessions) counseling program that focuses on problem-solving techniques. The EAP has also used feedback from clients to address organizational issues. For example, a survey that revealed differences between managers' and employees' perceptions of managers' leadership skills has led St. Joseph's to consider development of further workshops to train managers on how to be more effective leaders. And in response to complaints from nurses about a lack of communication with physicians, St. Joseph's invested $8,000 to implement nursing support groups and seminars to enhance nurse-physician collaboration. Additional EAP activities include consulting services for other corporations and help for employees in overcoming financial barriers to access to healthcare and social services. As budgets tighten, effective marketing of EAPs will be essential to their continued growth. In particular, EAP administrators must learn how to document the strategic and financial benefits of their programs.