It’s a stressful time to be a caregiver. Intermountain’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) can help. Here are some answers to common questions about how you can support yourself and your co-workers through hard times from EAP Director Matt Steinkamp.
What is EAP doing to support caregivers?
- EAP offers virtual “drop-in” sessions three times a week where caregivers can drop in for support. The 20-minute sessions teach specific techniques you can use to manage stress and decompress. All caregivers are invited and there’s no registration required.
- EAP offers mindfulness and meditation training sessions, as well as training sessions on how to disconnect from work. Check out the EAP website to register for virtual trainings offered weekly.
- EAP counselors are also available to join your team huddle or staff meeting to teach various decompression techniques to your team. You can request a training for your team by emailing Kim.McKendrick@imail.org.
- EAP is available to provide one-on-one counseling appointments with a counselor—either virtual or in person. Call 801-442-3509 to make an appointment.
- EAP counselors can respond onsite or virtually to support a team who has had a particularly upsetting or stressful event within their unit, such as the death of a team member or a traumatic patient situation. Call 801-442-3509 to request these support services.
- EAP has a counselor available 24/7 for urgent calls at 1-800-832-7733.
How can you recognize when a caregiver needs help, even if they say they’re fine?
Some common signs that could indicate someone is struggling include:
- Changes in behavior: They seemed happy in the past but now seem down, they were engaged but now withdrawn, or they were easy going but now seem agitated.
- Changes in appearance, including less attention to grooming.
- Increase in errors or appearing to have difficulty concentrating.
When you ask a caregiver how they’re doing and they answer, “fine,” but you’re not convinced they’re really OK, you could ask what fine means to them. You could say, “To me, fine means I’m sleeping, eating, feeling positive about my personal relationships, and wanting to come to work. How are things in these areas for you? Are you sleeping, eating, and feeling good about your work, coworkers, and personal relationships?”
How can you encourage people in need to seek EAP support?
- If you believe someone is in need of support, you could pull them aside to a quiet place and offer to call EAP with them, rather than just giving them the phone number.
- If you’re concerned about a caregiver’s safety, ask them about it. Ask, “Do I need to be concerned about your safety? Have you had any thoughts about harming yourself?” Be ready to call EAP and other resources if they indicate they aren’t feeling safe or have had thoughts of harming themselves. Asking someone directly about self-harm can be the impetus to getting them the help they need. Just because you ask someone about suicide or self-harm doesn’t mean it’s going to happen.
- If the situation seems severe, you should get the caregiver to the nearest emergency department right away. If they’re working remotely, you can call the local police department and request they do a “welfare check.” A police officer will go to their home to check to make sure they’re OK.
How else can I support my coworkers during this tough time?
- Rather than asking, “How can I help?” you could offer to assist in ways that would be meaningful for them. Offer to do something specific they might appreciate, like bringing them dinner, watching their kids for an evening, covering a shift for them, or taking a project off their plate. When we ask people how we can support them, they may not want to be burden or they may feel too overwhelmed to think of something you can do, so giving them some options could help..
- Be an advocate for selfcare. Invite a coworker to join you in a 10-minute walk, an online LiVe Well activity, an EAP drop-in CARE or mindfulness session, etc. Model good selfcare and share what you’re doing that’s helped you.
- Build “How I’m taking care of myself” time into your team discussions. Make it safe for people to share how they’re feeling and ask for help and support.