Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
about the ACA/TELUS Health EAP
The following FAQs reflect the incoming questions we have received from early learning service providers
since the launch of the ACA/TELUS Health EAP. We hope you find them useful and informative.
If you any further questions, please contact your ACA State Body.
What is an Employee Assistance Program (EAP)?
An Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is an external service, paid for by the employer, to ensure their employees and their families have access to professional assistance for personal or work-related issues that are impacting on their employment or work performance.
The EAP usually offers your team of staff a suite of practical services such as counselling from psychologists, social workers and other mental health professionals along with practical everyday life support including general health advice and programs around financial management or debt support.
Why should an early learning service have an EAP in place for their staff?
As an employer, you can implement strategies for a healthy workplace which promote the mental and physical wellbeing of your staff and also provide support to anyone who may be experiencing mental health issues.
A very important part of your strategy to foster a mentally healthy workplace includes offering your staff access to an EAP, which aims to enhance mental health and wellbeing, maximise productivity and improve organisational culture.
By improving your team members' lives and wellbeing, they will be happier, healthier, and ultimately more engaged and productive at work.
Do ECEC services have to offer their team an EAP? (Is this a regulated requirement?)
No, there is no regulation that stipulates that Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) services have to offer their staff an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
However you may be interested to know that ACECQA's Ten Year National Workforce Strategy includes an entire focus area on wellbeing (Focus Area 4 on page 52), which calls for research into practical mental health strategies for employees that work, along with the promotion of these wellbeing supports.
It is well recognised that the provision of an EAP can make a big difference to the workplace culture and environment by supporting your employees' health and wellbeing. Offering an EAP can result in staff employees being more engaged and satisfied with their jobs and employers, which in turn feeds into the level of quality of the service as well as staff retention rates.
Have I read the price correctly? (It seems too good to be true.)
Yes you have read the pricing structure correctly!
This is an ongoing offer for early learning service providers (both ACA members and non members) , to ensure that the early learning sector has access to an affordable, high-quality EAP.
As per the costs outlined below, the costs for the ACA/TELUS Health EAP are substantially less than for an EAP when subscribed directly between the employer and the EAP service.
We have achieved this low cost on behalf of the sector, by working with TELUS Health to come up with a packaged service that offers what we think are the most important inclusions for your team of staff, in order to be able to offer you an EAP at a much lower cost than usual.
These items include:
- the 24/7 access to immediate telephone therapy for emergencies
- access to 3 x telephone-based counselling sessions for each stated issue
(an example of an issue may be the death of a family member, marriage/partner separation, dealing with a stressful life situation, etc.) - referrals to in-person counselling where requested
- best-in-class clinical programmes that offer help and support for work, health and life changes.
The ACA/TELUS Health EAP Pricing Structure
The 12-month annual subscription fee is calculated at:
- $27 + GST per staff member for ACA members
- $34 + GST per staff member for non members
That's it - there are no additional fees and this is an ongoing low-cost offer.
How many telephone-based counselling sessions can each of my staff access?
Under the ACA/TELUS Health EAP, your staff have free access to three telephone-based or video-based (their preference) counselling sessions for each individual issue.
An individual issue may be a life situation such as the death of a loved one, separation of a partnership, a particular trauma event or something more general such as one's current personal emotional state.
If individuals would like additional counselling for a particular issue beyond the three free sessions, they may be referred to an external counselling service. This is something they may wish to discuss during their session.
Does the ACA/TELUS Health EAP include face-to-face counselling sessions?
No - the ACA/TELUS Health EAP offers employees 24/7 access to telephone-based and video-based counselling only.
This includes scheduled telephone and video appointments for non-urgent incoming calls - which make up the majority of callers - and immediate access to telephone-based counselling for emergency situations (i.e. when the caller has expressed that they are in danger of physically harming themselves or someone else).
This includes scheduled telephone and video appointments for non-urgent incoming calls - which make up the majority of callers - and immediate access to telephone-based counselling for emergency situations (i.e. when the caller has expressed that they are in danger of physically harming themselves or someone else).
However TELUS Health can also arrange referrals to in-person counselling, of which the cost can be partially or fully covered by a Mental Health Plan (through your GP) via Medicare.
Does the ACA/TELUS Health EAP include Critical Incident Support?
No - the ACA/TELUS Health EAP subscription does not include Critical Indicent Support in your initial subscription.
However when you sign up to the EAP you have immediate access to this service as an add-on payable extra via TELUS Health should you require it.
However when you sign up to the EAP you have immediate access to this service as an add-on payable extra via TELUS Health should you require it.
Should you request this level of service, you will be invoiced directly from TELUS Health on a case by case basis, .
TELUS Health uses a team of specialist clinicians with trauma response experience to provide appropriate and highly responsive critical incident support, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
Their specialised Critical Incident Disaster Response support clinicians provide immediate guidance regarding the likely effects of a traumatic event, they will agree on an intervention plan, including clinically appropriate response times.
The TELUS Health team will also recommend the most appropriate intervention for your circumstances and will dispatch local clinicians to conduct onsite interventions.
What other benefits can my team of staff take advantage of when using the EAP?
Your team members may like to:
- Start an Personal Wellbeing Assessment
Simply log in to the app/online platform and click on the "Start An Assessment" button. - Browse wellbeing content based on their interests, for tips and tools for everyday life. Produced and reviewed by industry experts and bestselling authors, there’s a wealth of wellbeing content that covers areas related to Family, Health, Life, Money and Work.
Simply log in to the app/online platform and visit the “Life” section from the menu bar. - Get started on the CareNow program, which gives them access to a range of programmes designed to help with anxiety, depression, and stress.
- Take advantage of the exclusive discounts to EAP members.
Simply log in to the app/online platform and click on the "Exclusive Offers" tab at the top.
There are discounts on GoogleStore and Apple products, Hello Fresh and lots of other retailers, as well as gyms and accommodation. - Print out the wallet card and put it in their wallet for easy access to their TELUS Health EAP 24/7 support services.
Why does the EAP provide only one log in & password for all my staff to use?
In order to reduce administrative costs, the ACA/TELUS Health EAP provides you with one log-in ID and password, to be shared with all staff.
However as soon as your individual staff members engage with the online platform on a personal level, such as by starting an online health assessment, they will be asked to create their own log-in & password. This means that if they record their weight, height, etc, this information will be stored in their own, private and personal profile.
However as soon as your individual staff members engage with the online platform on a personal level, such as by starting an online health assessment, they will be asked to create their own log-in & password. This means that if they record their weight, height, etc, this information will be stored in their own, private and personal profile.
Does the EAP allow employers to see which services their staff are using and why?
No - any EAP benefits received by employees or family members remain confidential.
This means that while the employer pays for the service, the employer has no insight into an employee's use of the service.
That is, employers do not get to know who is using and accessing the service, how often employees may be calling the telephone therapy service or what they might be using it for.
This is an important detail, as it means that employees can trust that they are engaging with a private, confidential service.
Does the EAP allow employers to get a bird's eye view of whether staff are even using the service (via de-identified data)?
No - the ACA/TELUS Health EAP subscription does not include any level of feedback or corporate reporting to the employer/service provider.
This is a level of service that ACA chose not to include, in order to keep the annual costs down.
The ACA/TELUS Health EAP pricing model is designed with the ACA as the primary client, allowing you to avoid any client set-up fees.
That’s why, when your employees contact TELUS Health to arrange counselling, they are asked to identify themselves as being from “ACA.”
This structure means we don’t collect usage data at the individual ECEC service provider level – it’s simply not possible under our low-cost offer.
Service providers seeking service-specific statistics have the option to set up their EAP directly with TELUS Health or another EAP provider, under a different pricing model and generally at a higher cost.
When assessing the “value for money” of an employer-sponsored EAP, it’s important to recognise that the most significant benefit is the ongoing support available to staff, whenever they may need it.
As it’s impossible to predict when someone might need support, knowing that the counselling services are always available is a significant benefit for your team.
If/when you subscribe to an EAP, we encourage you to gently remind your staff about their free access to the EAP services regularly throughout the year, especially during times that may bring about stress or trauma.
Offering an EAP to your team helps foster a positive workplace culture, reduces absenteeism, and enhances staff retention.
What if our service provider would like a more tailored offer with a greater suite of services than the ACA/TELUS Health EAP?
If you are interested in a tailored EAP and Wellbeing solution specific to your organisation, you may consider subscribing directly with TELUS Health by emailing Kylie Hancock at kylie.hancock@telushealth.com.
TELUS Health Total Wellbeing can offer a tailored solution for your organisation, which can include, but not limited to:
- Wellbeing Newsfeed – specialist information on wellbeing-resources and the ability for provider postings, allowing your organisation to push content directly to employees using smart technology that will send a push notification to all registered employees.
- Complimentary access to TELUS Health Monthly Newsletter and Quarterly Webinars.
- Access to the Mobile App customised to include your own branding/logos.
- Up to 6 sessions of counselling per issue (unlimited issues per annum) – counselling sessions will be offered via telephone, secure video, chat and face-to-face.
- Launch communications – videos, intranet text, email communications, HR & Manager communications, FAQ documents, employee and manager/HR webinars.
- Account Management
- Corporate reporting , providing comprehensive analytical insights to drive greater measurable outcomes.
- Critical Incident and Disaster Response support
- And more.
To discuss your business needs, please contact Kylie Hancock at kylie.hancock@telushealth.com
PLEASE NOTE: If you have already subscribed to the ACA TELUS Health offer & wish to upgrade to the TELUS Health Total Wellbeing Platform, you can do so immediately but please be aware that ACA is not offering refunds for paid subscribers.
If you choose to upgrade we advise you to opt out of renewing your ACA subscription when you receive your renewal notice in August next year.
How to get started
If you're ready to subscribe to our EAP, just complete the online form.
Upon receipt of payment, you'll receive an email providing you with everything you need to get started and inform your team about their very own EAP.
