Rainy River District

What is the EFAP?

Your Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP) provides you and your
significant others with immediate, confidential, and professional assistance for
personal problems that may negatively affect your well being.

Why have an EFAP?

Most people encounter problems from time to time. This is both natural and predictable. Often, you deal with such problems on your own without specialized
help. Sometimes, personal problems are not easily resolved and they may begin
to hinder your lifestyle and ability to perform properly on the job. Your EFAP is
intended to help you maintain personal wellness and satisfactory work
performance.

Your EFAP offers timely access to a team of health care professionals who have the skills required to assist you with a wide variety of personal difficulties or wellness concerns. Some of these services include personal counselling for managing stress
and tension, family problems, emotional difficulties and coping with job stress and conflicts in the work place. Crisis counselling is available 24 hours daily by calling
the EFAP telephone number.

You can get help for:

Achieving well-being
• Stress • Mental health concerns • Grief and loss • Crisis situations

Managing relationships and family
• Communication • Separation/divorce • Parenting

Dealing with workplace challenges
• Stress • Performance • Work-life balance

Tackling addictions
• Alcohol • Drugs • Tobacco • Gambling

Finding child and elder care resources
• Child care • Schooling • Nursing/retirement homes

Getting legal advice
• Family law • Separation/divorce • Custody

Receiving financial guidance
• Debt management • Bankruptcy • Retirement

Improving nutrition
• Weight management • High cholesterol and blood pressure • Diabetes

Focusing on your physical health
• Understand symptoms • Identify conditions • Improve sleep

No Cost

There is no cost to you or your family to use your EFAP. This benefit is provided to you by your employer. Your EFAP can provide a series of sessions with a professional and if you need more specialized or longer-term support, our team of experts can suggest an appropriate specialist or service that is best suited to your needs. While fees for these additional services are your responsibility, they may be covered by your provincial or organizational health plan.

Is it Confidential?

Your EFAP is completely confidential within the limits of the law. No one, including your employer, will ever know that
you have used the program unless you choose to tell them. In order to reinforce your confidence, EFAP services are provided by an offsite team (Morneau Shepell). Access to the EFAP is voluntary, and if you decide to refer yourself to the Program, then only you will know. All records concerning you will be kept by Morneau Shepell in the strictest of confidence.

To preserve confidentiality:
• Two people from the same organization will not have back-to-back appointments with the same counsellor to prevent accidentally running into each other.
• Identifying telephone messages are never left at home or at work unless you authorize Morneau Shepell to do so.
• Online access is firewall and password protected unique to each user.
• Your written authorization is required to confirm/deny access or to release your file.

How can I access the services?

The EFAP can be accessed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year through any of the following:

1. Call to speak with a counsellor or to set-up an appointment: 1-844-880-9142
2. www.workhealthlife.com – select the orange “get started online” button on the right hand side for online access.
3. My EAP app.  Available for download from your app store.  

What are the ways I can receive counselling from my EFAP?

Morneau Shepell’s goal is to ensure that you are provided with the service that will best meet your needs and lifestyle – leading to efficient and effective problem resolution.

The following counselling modalities are available for you:
• In-Person (currently suspended due to COVID-19)
• Telephonic
• E-Counselling (email style)
• Video counselling
• First Chat (also available on My EAP app)
• Online Group Counselling

What happens when I call the EFAP for services?

All calls are answered live by qualified Care Access Centre Representatives. These are Morneau Shepell employees located in centres across Canada. Callers never have to leave a voicemail because someone will always answer the phone 24/7/365. The representative will ask for your name (the service is confidential but not anonymous), name of your organization (to know what you have access to), ask a series of questions to ensure you are not at risk (as part of our best practice) and ask open ended questions like, “How may I help you?” In the event of an emergency or if you call in a crisis, master’s-level clinicians are available in the call centre 24/7/365. The representative may conduct assessments and make recommendations based on needs and preferences.

Your first counselling appointment with the EFAP will consist of a problem focused interview with a counsellor. Your counsellor will attempt to identify the underlying problem and recommend a mutually-agreeable plan of action. If you should require longer-term help, your counsellor will assist you in referral to a qualified professional or agency. If your counsellor feels that your problem is very serious, you may be asked to see your physician for referral to ongoing care.

How many sessions do I get?

EFAP counselling provides clinically appropriate short-term counselling. Based on the counselling goal established by the client, sessions are flexible.  Once the client meets their goal the case is closed.   Sessions can vary by client as some meet their goal more readily but typically average 1-3 or 5.  There is flexibility to offer additional sessions as needed.  The counsellor will determine early on if the issue requires longer-term or more specialized support.  In those situations, the counsellor will identify appropriate external resources and provide EFAP support to the client to bridge them during the transition.   The client can re-access EFAP for additional issues as needed.

Am I eligible?

All designated employees are eligible to use the EFAP free of cost. Employees who are under the active care of another agency or professional (psychiatrist, counsellor, WSIB, etc.) will not normally qualify for EFAP services if they seek EFAP help for the same problem.

Significant others (such as a parents and children) living in the employee's place of residence are also eligible to receive the same services.

Morneau Shepell
Phone: 1-844-880-9142
TTY: 1-877-338-0275
Website: https://www.workhealthlife.com/