According to The Epidemiology of major Depressive Disorder Study (The National omorbidity Survey Replication – (NCS-R) of June 2003, much progress has been made in removing the stigma of mental illness, but significant challenges remain.

As a primary care physician, you play a leading role in integrating medical and behavioral care for your patients, especially for patients with depression. Medial professionals like you now handle most of the responsibility for treating depression, and the number of people seeking help continues to grow. In fact, industry data show that up to 70 percent of all antidepressants are prescribed by a patient’s primary care physician. At Cigna Behavioral Health one of our goals is to help primary care physicians become even more adept at recognizing and treating depression.

That’s why we want to make sure you’re aware of an important behavioral health and substance abuse benefit your patient may have through their employer-sponsored Employee Assistance Program (EAP). An EAP provides clinical services for the fife-stresses that may be affecting your patient. It’s confidential and there’s no out-of-pocket expense for your patient.

Employers who offer an EAP also usually offer another service, typical called Work/Life services, which can address a patient’s non-clinical problems. Work/life services are an integral component of an EAP services, because non-clinical problems can often increase the stressors that may be exacerbating a patient’s clinical problem. These can include the struggle to find child or elder care, handling stress at work, relationship problems adolescent-related challenges, and financial or legal problems, all of which can aggravate – if not cause – issues that can ultimately lead to clinical problems, including depression, anxiety, panic attacks or worst. And EAP can be every effective in resolving these issues. When asked, over 90 percent of the respondents to a recent Cigna Behavioral Health survey said using the Cigna Behavioral Health EAP helped them “resolved their issues.”¹

A broad offering of Work/Life services provides information, educational materials, resources, referrals, and ongoing support available telephonically and online for topics such as:

• Family Care Resource and Referral services, including childcare, adoption, prenatal care, parenting, summer care, special needs, senior care, and pet care.
• Personal Resource and Referral services, including legal resources and financial resources, education, and convenience services
• Mind and Body Resource and Referral services, including health and wellness programs.
• Career and Benefits resources and Referral Services, including Life@Work Services, career development, and work transition services.

If you believe these services would a helpful component in your treatment plan and the member has Cigna Behavioral Health for EAP, please call us or have the member call us at the number on their EAP card or their Cigna Healthcare ID card for further assistance.

Footnote

¹ Based on Cigna Behavioral Health member EAP services survey data.