Help for Working Caregivers

 By Dena R. Howard, J.D.
Elder Care Manager 

Caregivers have an enormous unmet need for information that is probably not being served by their employer’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP).[1]  Working caregivers have little or no time to learn about available resources and look to the Internet, friends, family and their doctors when they do seek information.  More than two-thirds of surveyed caregivers say they need help with or information about many issues they commonly face.[2]

Working caregivers of elderly recipients are the most in need and most difficult to reach segment of the caregiver population.  Studies show that working caregivers have more burdens and fewer opportunities to obtain personal, face-to-face counseling and locally specific resources than caregivers who are not employed.[3]  “A typical caregiver in the U.S. is female, approximately 46 years old, has at least some college experience, and spends an average of 20 hours or more per week providing unpaid care to someone age 50 or older.  A majority of caregivers are married, and most have juggled work with caregiving responsibilities at some point during their role as caregiver.”[4]  Older caregivers (defined by this study as age 50-64) are more likely to be providing care for 10 years or more, and their care receivers tend to be parents and spouses.[5]   The main problems of care receivers were identified as old age, diabetes, cancer, stroke, and dementia.[6]   Caregivers who live with their care receivers are more likely to report they are in fair or poor health, they are primary caregivers, and their care receivers are more likely to have the most needs for assistance with two or more independent activities of daily living (IADL’s).[7]  The impact of caregiving on caregivers include increased emotional stress, giving up vacations, hobbies or other social activities, leaving work early, going into work late, taking time off a working day to provide care, taking leaves of absence from work, going from full-time to part-time work, taking a less demanding job, quitting work, losing job benefits, turning down promotions, or choosing early retirement.[8]

Employee Assistance Programs initially appeared in corporate life as worksite, in-person counseling and follow-up monitoring for employees who were referred for substance abuse problems that resulted in absenteeism or other work-related management problems.  Now in a fourth-generation type of program, EAP’s have shifted to a cost containment/capitated managed care model that has been outsourced to one of only a handful EAP companies “that combine work/life and employee assistance into a single, primarily telephonic and Internet-based service.”[9]   These services may be keeping employer costs down, but studies in the HR field show that EAP’s who have Worksite Counselors engaged in face-to-face counseling and follow-up monitoring are actually utilized 60% more than EAP’s who offer only 1-800 telephonic counseling.  Worksite EAP’s also “received 500% more supervisory referrals and identified 300% more employee substance abuse cases.”[10] Employees with depression or substance problems often do not seek out professional help on their own.  Supervisors and HR professionals are more likely to intervene when they meet in person with an EAP counselor “whose name and face they know from repeated worksite visits, as opposed to calling an 800 number and speaking to a mental health professional who has never set foot in their workplace.”[11]

Senior Care Managers of Northeast Florida, LLC is not an EAP.  We are trained and experienced consultants who are familiar with locally specific resources for elderly adults and caregivers.  If the information that most working caregivers get from their employer’s EAP is a 1-800 telephone contact -- who probably does not have more than the phone numbers for Area Agency on Aging and Eldercare Locator -- then most working caregivers are getting only a small fraction of the help they need.  What we offer to working caregivers is locally specific information and an opportunity to meet with us in person again and again as Worksite Counselors. 

Senior Care Managers offers employers three valuable services:

1. As a no-cost addition to an employer’s benefits package, Senior Care Managers serves as a locally-specific information and referral source.  I&R calls, within certain time limits, are provided free to the employer and employee.
2. Worksite Counselors and Elder Care Management services are available to employees at a employee discounted rate for a specified number of hours when Senior Care Managers is an approved provider for the employer.
3. Senior Care Managers provides seminars and workshops for employees and supervisors with specific information on caregivers’ top 10 needs for help or information, along with problem-solving strategies for coping with stress.  Our programs are tailored to the needs of attendees, and range from a 1-hour workshop to a full-day seminar.

How can we help your employees and your organization?  Call us and let's talk!