Tackling personal woes at work

By VICKI JAYNE

Your mother has just gone reluctantly into a rest-home, your son is having big hassles at school and your husband is away on business - for a month.

Your own job is a demanding one in human resources, but with everything that's going on, you're on the verge of not coping.

Most people would agree that personal problems often spill over into work, decreasing productivity.

In fact, emotional problems account for 61 per cent of absences from work each year, according to a brochure outlining Health Innovations' "Peak Performance Programme" (P3).

The recently launched initiative is a comprehensive service designed to ensure that employees of participating organisations receive convenient and effective treatment for their personal problems.

The idea is to deal with these before they start affecting work performance, says Gretchen Pilkington, Health Innovations' operations director.

"Our healthcare model is one of taking a targeted approach to problem resolution in a relatively brief time period.

"We work with people to give them coping skills so they can move on - and be able to cope in future."

As well as early intervention, she says the programme plugs the gap where most employee assistance schemes stop short and the public health service kicks in.

A 1989 study suggests that two-thirds of New Zealanders are likely to have a least one episode of impaired functioning as a result of a significant mental health or substance abuse problem during their lives.

While workplace stress has received a lot of attention, Gretchen Pilkington notes that common conditions such as depression and alcohol abuse, which can have a more detrimental effect on organisations, remain largely hidden.

The public health system is geared to dealing with the serious cases, but little provision is made for those with more moderate or temporary problems.

"If someone has depression or some form of drug or alcohol problem, it's not a personal flaw or character weakness, it's a disease just as a heart condition is.

"It needs to be treated and a person should not be penalised for getting help," says Gretchen Pilkington.

Putting that message into the workplace is part of the P3 programme.

Management commitment and its understanding of how health issues can impact on workplace performance is a vital first step.

"We seek to get top-level support from the organisation and take managers through training to help them understand how the programme works and how they might enhance it.

"How to recognise signs of stress, both in themselves and others. Also how to deal with hostile situations or how you might suggest that a person uses the programme."

A similar orientation seminar is run for employees, who also have to buy into the programme in the sense of using it when they need to, says Gretchen Pilkington.

"If an organisation has made the investment, then it's up to employees to access it.

"The service is completely confidential and is available 24 hours a day.

"We tell employees what happens when they dial the 0800 number, and take them through all sorts of scenarios as to why they might want to pick up the phone and ask for help.

"Perhaps they're having marital difficulties or they're feeling anxious about something.

"They don't have to wait until there's a problem at work."

The investment for organisations is "less than the average cost of business cards," says Health Innovations.

It says employees can expect a $3 return on every dollar invested in P3.

Setting up the programme can take 60 to 90 days, says Gretchen Pilkington.

"We'd come in and do an initial review with the senior management team and discuss issues that are specific to that organisation.

"We might find that for some the major problem is turnover, while others have more trouble with absenteeism. So we need to structure the programme to target the problem areas."

Quality monitoring is an inbuilt aspect of the service and Health Innovations provides quarterly reports to client companies as to what the service is doing for them.

How the programme is set up will depend on company size, its geographic location and spread.

Health Innovations has staff centres in Wellington and Auckland.

If an organisation has a large enough employee base in one place, it can set up a staff centre on site, or use contract staff.

In either case, service providers undergo a rigorous recruiting, interviewing and training process.

While the Health Innovations model is a US import, a three-year gestation in this country has given it a definite Kiwi flavour, says Gretchen Pilkington.

"Our medical director is a Kiwi and the clinical aspect of the service has been adapted to the New Zealand environment."

The privately backed company has a service agreement with Southern Cross to deliver its programme in whatever way the health insurance provider wants to package it.

A general practitioners programme that started this year is proving popular and Health Innovations plans to start promoting its workplace programme this month.

Initial interest has been high, says Gretchen Pilkington.

"There seems to be a huge need for a comprehensive service of this sort."

* vjayne@iconz.co.nz