Companies no longer look at mental health benefits as a nice-to-have but rather a necessity. Dr. Kennette Thigpen, CEO of Welltrust Partners, stated, “with the current political climate, social unrest and the looming pandemic, we are about to embark on a tsunami of mental health needs.” For this reason, many human resource departments have started to revisit, revamp or implement mental health services for their employees.

Here are four ways you can proactively address and support your employees mental health for COVID-19 and beyond.

Understand How Mental Health Programs Can Support Employees

The most common mental health program employers offer is an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). An EAP is designed to provide assistance and support to employees so they can cope and find solutions to problems they are facing in their personal and professional lives.

Selecting the right mental health program can be a challenging task. The reason being is because each employee struggles with different issues. This is where an EAP becomes invaluable. An EAP covers a wide area of topics ranging from family, financial support, pet care, bereavement, child and elder care, suicidal thoughts, drug and alcohol abuse and anything else that ultimately impacts employee’s workplace productivity.

To better understand how mental health services can support employees, employers should determine what type of services are available in each program. It’s important to note, not every EAP will have the same offerings. Along with choosing the right services, the EAP an employer selects should offer virtual support tools and resources that are easily accessible to employees.