EMPLOYEE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Only calls made from a landline are free. If you are calling from a cell phone, tell the tele-counsellor and they will call you back
How can I be absolutely sure that confidentiality will be kept when feedback is given to my company?
No names are ever mentioned in any of the feedback reports – only statistics such as number of callers, how many males/females, what were the main issues for each quarter/year.
All counsellors working at SHMS/EAP Africa are qualified psychologists or social workers and are therefore bound by a code of ethics which stipulates that confidentiality of their clients must be maintained at all times.
Confidentiality will ONLY be breached in the following situations:
- Risk to self
- Risk to others
- Damage to property
- Children
In these situations, the counsellor will tell the caller that they will be breaching confidentiality. We will tell as few people as possible and tell them as little as possible
You can choose where you would like to see the face to face therapist (i.e. close to your work or close your home) and you can choose to see either a male or female therapist. You can also select which language you would like to speak in whilst in therapy.
If you are not happy with the therapist that you have been referred to, you can call the call center and ask to speak to Case Manager. Please let him/her know that you do not feel comfortable with the therapist that you have been referred to and they will try and find another therapist more suitable. Please note however that you should let the Case Manager know as soon as possible i.e. after your first session.
Your company has contracted SHMS/EAP Africa to provide an EAP service to you as they value you as an employee and want to provide a support structure for you and your colleagues. Your employer has a duty of care that stipulates that they should attempt to get help for their employees. It creates a win-win solution for the organization. If the employees are happy, they work better and therefore the company and the employees’ benefit. The program also helps with work/life balance which in the long run will improve quality of life, length of life and prevent or reduce burn out
Your toll-free number will come up on our system as to which company you are from. We however do not have anyway of knowing if you are actually from that company (especially as we do not ask for employee numbers or check names). We request that that you do not give out the number to people not eligible for the service as this affects the quality of our service if more people are calling the call center than we have catered for, we may not have enough therapists on duty.
If this is the case, then the issue is obviously not a short term problem and therefore we will however refer to external resources for further therapy. However, telephone counselling is unlimited.
It is no cost to the employee- it is a benefit provided to you from your company. The contracts SHMS to provide the service and pays per employee
Yes, except that there is a problem with the counsellors working shifts and that maybe the same counsellor is not working at that particular time that you call. If you would like to consult with the same person, you can make a telephonic appointment with the counsellor.
Confidential case notes are kept on record at SHMS which enables any of the tele-counsellors to track a case. Therefore, in the event that you need to speak to someone urgently and the counsellor you originally spoke to is not available any of the other counsellors on duty will be able to track what has happened previously through the case notes. This is why we encourage you to give your name and use the same name for each call as a consistent reference.
Yes. Face-to-face appointments are made to suit yourself and the counsellors you are seeing. Most counsellors work outside working hours as they are the time most suitable to clients.
It depends if you would like to keep your case confidential or not. If you do not mind that your manager knows that you are seeing someone. We recommend that you request that you are able to have that time off. If you would like it to remain confidential, you can book to see your therapist after hours or on the weekend or during a lunch hour.
No. there is a maximum of the limit per unrelated problem per person per year. In other words, someone may have a maximum limit for divorce in January, maximum limit for trauma in July and maybe maximum limit in December for bereavement if an incident are unrelated.
Remember- the psychologist determines how many sessions is required.
Please note that trauma face to face is unlimited.
No you can even remain anonymous or use an alias if you would like.
No. we will not speak to your manager, we will equip you with the skills to deal with the issue yourself
If there is a common trend in a particular department, this will show up in the reporting system and recommendations will be made around those trends.
No. rehabilitation usually deals with long term issues, something SHMS is not contracted to address. We will refer you to external sources.
You do not have to call SHMS during working hours. SHMS is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and counsellors are even available on public holidays. You can call any time that is convenient to you.
We do not phone on individual on the recommendation of another individual – we believe that this is an impingement on their privacy and that they will call when they are ready to open up to someone.