Employee Assistance Program

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The Employee Assistance Program offers Michigan State University free, confidential support for mental health, work-life concerns, and life challenges. EAP services are available to faculty, staff, retirees, and graduate assistants, as well as their spouses, partners, and benefits-eligible children (through age 26, see "Consultations for Children" below for details)

Your EAP benefit includes one to six sessions of counseling per event. Appointments can be in-person or virtual, and the choice is always yours. The EAP uses a HIPAA compliant Zoom account to maintain confidentiality for our clients.

Our team is dedicated to connecting you with the most appropriate and available care.

To make an appointment, or to learn more about how we can assist you:

Email eap@msu.edu. You may send us an email from whatever email account you feel most comfortable using when communicating with us.
Call 517-355-4506 Monday through Friday, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. If we are unable to immediately answer your call, please do leave a voicemail message including your name and phone number so that we can return your call.
After-hours services available for all MSU Employees now! Callers will have the option to either leave a voicemail for a callback or be redirected to our after-hours counseling service for immediate assistance.

The Employee Assistance Program is located in Linton Hall on the campus of Michigan State University, 479 W. Circle Drive, East Lansing, MI 48824. Use the Interactive Campus Map to locate Linton Hall and nearby parking options.

Confidentiality
At the MSU EAP, we take confidentiality very seriously. We want you to feel safe if you decide to talk with one of our counselors. The information that you may share with your EAP counselor or staff member is confidential, and will not become a part of your employment record. The only people who have access to EAP records are those people who are currently employed by the EAP. Our Electronic Medical Record is unique to our program as well, meaning that no one else on campus will even have access to that information.

In fact, the MSU EAP will never release any information identifying an individual as a client receiving, or having ever received, counseling services with us, unless one of the following exceptions applies:

The client signs a release of information for authorizing specific information to be released to a specific person(s) for a determined purpose.
A disclosure is directed by court order.
The client appears to be in immediate, life-threatening danger to self or other(s).
Information shared with the counselor reveals concerns related to suspected/possible child abuse or neglect (counselors are "mandatory reporters" of child abuse and are required by law to report any suspected abuse of a minor child).

If you have any questions about our confidentiality policies, please don’t hesitate to reach out at (517) 355-4506, or eap@msu.edu.

The initial assessment is conducted by a fully licensed, master’s level counselor during one or more meetings. Your counselor will gather appropriate demographic, social, psychological, medical and work history from you. The counselor will then recommend short-term counseling at the EAP, refer you to other providers for additional evaluation, or connect you with ongoing counseling.

ThrivingCampus: An online platform that makes it easier for you to connect with off-campus mental health care and wellbeing services
TELADOC: National network of U.S. board-certified physicians, pediatricians, and behavioral health providers that lets you resolve your routine medical and/or mental health concerns, on-demand 24/7, via phone or online video consultations from wherever you happen to be.
Community Mental Health
988 Suicide and Crisis Line
End Violent Encounter (EVE)
Lansing Association for Human Rights

Every MSU employee - faculty, staff, retiree, graduate student assistant - is eligible for six sessions of EAP counseling, at no cost. You may use your 6 EAP sessions to address a specific problem or concern you are experiencing. Counselors provide a confidential space for reflection on issues that are important to you. Short term counseling can help you consider effective solutions that are in line with your personal values.

Some concerns will require a referral to a community provider who accepts your insurance. The EAP is familiar with a wide network of local services, resource, and providers, and will work with you to find what you need. The decision to accept the recommendation remains with you.

The children of MSU employees are eligible for EAP services while they are eligible for benefits.

Ages 0-10

Parenting Consultation on child development, parenting, socialization, and other child focused issues
Helping parents get connected with helpful/appropriate mental health and family resources in our local community

Ages 11-13

Schedule initial appointment with parents to help evaluate how best to proceed with counseling services.
Short-term counseling (1-6 sessions), if determined appropriate by counselor, or providing recommendations for parents.
Helping children identify their own strengths, gifts, and coping resources
Assisting children with loss, trauma, transitions, worries, anger, sadness, fear, or behavioral issues
Helping parents get connected with helpful/appropriate mental health and family resources in our local community
Parenting support and education

Ages 14-18

Short term counseling (1 - 6 sessions)
Assisting teenagers with stress and other emotions and finding positive solution to the challenges they are currently experiencing
Helping parents get connected with helpful/appropriate mental health and family resources in our local community
Parenting support and education

Ages 19-26

Short term counseling (1 - 6 sessions) for young adults still enrolled on their parents' insurance policy
Assisting young adults to move through daily living challenges and critical events in their lives
Assisting young adults with transition to independent living, exploring healthy relationships, considering alcohol and other drug use
Helping young adults and parents get connected with helpful/appropriate mental health and family resources in our local community
Parenting support and education

NOTE: The short-term counseling provided by the EAP consists of 1 to 6 counseling sessions, with possible referral for on-going counseling if needed. To set up an appointment for your child, contact us at eap@msu.edu. Adult children will need to contact the EAP directly in order to schedule an appointment.

EAP counselors understand the role of the parent changes as children grow and develop. Effective parenting skills and approaches must shift and change over time. AT time, parents may feel lost, confused, or overwhelmed with a particular stage their child is in. EAP counselors can help sort out new ways of approaching your child, while providing a safe, judgement-free place to explore your own reactions and feelings about your child.

EAP counselors can help you work through a specific life event, improve the general health of your relationship, or explore an issue together. EAP counselors will assist you in determining if couples counseling or individual counseling is the preferred treatment.

Emotional wellness defines the internal resources an individual draws upon as they move through their day to day life. As we learn to access our emotional wellbeing, we are able to respond to everyday and exceptional life events with greater effectiveness and less stress and upset.

EAP counselors are available to provide phone consultations to employees in need of specific information regarding campus or community resources. If you need information, but don’t feel like you need to come in for a session, this option might work for you.

EAP counselors are available for consultation with supervisors, managers, and executive leadership, assisting with concerns related to any emotional, mental health, or substance abuse issues being experienced by an employee. The focus of these consultations is placed on:
- Accurate assessment of the employee situation
- How to best support the specific employee
- How to facilitate a healthy team response to employee behavior
- How to support the supervisor or manager in their own emotional health as it relates to issues of secondary trauma, concern about an employee, or working through how an employee issue may be triggering other issues for the supervisor

Several EAP counselors are trained to provide Prolonged Exposure for Primary Care (PE-PC), an evidence-based, trauma-informed treatment that focuses on decreasing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

EAP counselors specialize in helping individuals reduce their perceived stress level and shift their personal experience of current life circumstances. This can help gain a deeper perspective from which to make decisions about relationships, work, and life. This may be especially important when current circumstances are challenging or impacted by systems or structures you don’t have control over.

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