The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a resource employers use to provide confidential counseling benefits to their employees and employees’ families. Employees of participating EAP companies have easy access to professional help with issues that impact their personal, family and work lives. We have licensed and certified counselors in Columbus and LaGrange, GA and Lanett, AL. In addition, we have counselors all over the nation that participate as affiliate providers.

	Information for Employees
	Information for Employers
	Mandated Referrals
	Counseling Services Outside Columbus, GA
	Caring the Mind Program
	Monthly EAP Newsletter
	Current EAP Companies

Information for Employees

It often helps to talk to someone about the crises, situations and stresses in our lives. Your company makes a number of counseling sessions at the Pastoral institute available for you and your family at no cost to you. For details about your company’s benefit, you may talk to your human resource representative or call us at 706-649-6500. We have 24/7 on-call service for emergency situations. All counseling is confidential.

Information for Employers

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP)  provides confidential counseling services to employees and their families. An EAP helps individuals manage personal and family issues that may negatively impact job performance and create disruptions in the workplace. Research indicates that a viable, active EAP provides positive bottom line results. The business cost of untreated and mistreated mental health issues is $113 billion annually, according to the National Mental Health Association. Much of that represents decreased productivity.

Studies show positive that benefits of an EAP include:

• Decreased utilization of health insurance benefits.
• Decreased absenteeism.
• Decreased turnover.
• Improved morale.

A good EAP translates into an estimated return that's between three and seven times a company's original investment.

If you are interested in finding out more about our Employee Assistance Program and how it might fit in your workplace, contact us at brc@pilink.org or 706-649-6400. We'd be delighted to serve you.

Mandated Referrals

On rare occasions, it may be necessary to mandate an employee receive counseling. Mandating an employee with performance problems for counseling is a management tool to help companies keep valuable workers. After you've tried everything in your system (progressive discipline, etc.) to correct the issues, you may require that an employee attend counseling as a final effort to help keep his/her job.

To mandate an employee to receive counseling, it is important to discuss the situation with your Employee Assistance Program or Caring for the Mind consultant. After doing so, complete the Mandated Referral Form and fax it to us at 706-649-6430. For more information on Mandated Referrals, contact us at brc@pilink.org or 706-649-6400.

Counseling Services Outside Columbus, Georgia

Regardless of where you or your company is located, our Employee Assistance Program will find a counselor for you from among our extensive network of counseling professionals. For the names of approved counselors in your area, call our toll-free number 1-800-649-6446 from 8 a.m. - 9 p.m. (ET) Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays.

Caring for the Mind Program

Caring for the Mind is an expanded employee assistance program available to employees of Aflac Inc., the Synovus Family of Companies and W.C. Bradley Co. This employee benefit provides six sessions of counseling for the employee and six  sessions for each member of the immediate family that is covered under the employee’s health insurance. The employer pays 100 percent of the cost for these sessions, so there is no cost to the employee. After the six sessions are completed, the employee pays a  reasonable co-pay.

In Columbus, check your company’s intranet for a list of approved providers. Outside Columbus, Synovus employees should check the Blue Cross Blue Shield or 1st Medical web sites to locate a provider in your area. For Aflac and W.C. Bradley, call 1-800-649-6446 for a referral.

Companies with the Caring for the Mind Program

• Aflac, Inc.
• Synovus Family of Companies
• W.C. Bradley Co.