Future Trends in EAP: Highlights from an Industry Survey & Commentary

Abstract

In the fall of 2011, the authors conducted a survey to examine trends in the services and strategies offered by employee assistance programs (EAPs). This article features some of the key findings from this research. Data was collected via a secure website from 150 EA professionals in the U.S. and Canada. Most were in senior management or clinical leadership roles. Respondents were associated with the EAP field in a variety of roles, including working for external vendors of EA services (51%); working for internal programs (23%); an individual provider of clinical services (11%); consultant or academic (5%); or “other” (9%). The following seven services were included: 1) Counseling with assessment, brief clinical support, and referral; 2) Management consultations and organizational support; 3) Critical incident response; 4) Integration of EAP with work/life and wellness; 5) High-risk case finding and long-term case management; 6) Support for employees on STD/LTD disability leave; and 7) Technology and web-enabled services. Each of these services were rated on three issues (a) estimated frequency of use by organizational clients; (b) importance in defining EAP; and (c) business value. The potential for providing more strategic consulting by EAPs at the organizational level was also examined with a qualitative question. Results and strategic implications are presented.