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The Cost of Screening and Brief Intervention in Employee Assistance Programs

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Abstract

Few studies examine the costs of conducting screening and brief intervention (SBI) in settings outside health care. This study addresses this gap in knowledge by examining the employer-incurred costs of SBI in an employee assistance program (EAP) when delivered by counselors. Screening was self-administered as part of the intake paperwork, and the brief intervention (BI) was delivered during a regular counseling session. Training costs were $83 per counselor. The cost of a screen to the employer was $0.64; most of this cost comprised the cost of the time the client spent completing the screen. The cost of a BI was $2.52. The cost of SBI is lower than cost estimates of SBI conducted in a health care setting. The low costs for the current study suggest that only modest gains in outcomes would likely be needed to justify delivering SBI in an EAP setting.

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Notes

  1. For EAP counselors and supervisors, the average of the quartiles of the hourly wage was taken across the following occupational codes in the Community and Social Services Operations categories: 21–1011; 21–1013; 21–1014; 21–1015; 21–1019; 21–1021; 21–1022; 21–1023; 21–1029; and 21–1099. The median was used for counselors; the third quartile was used for supervisors; and the median was used from the Receptionists and Information Clerks category, occupational code 43–4171 for EAP intake coordinators.

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Funding/Support

This work was funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism grant number AA013925-01A2.

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  1. RTI International, 3040 Cornwallis Road, P.O. Box 12194, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27709, USA

    Alexander J. Cowell PhD, Jeremy W. Bray PhD & Jesse M. Hinde BA

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  1. Alexander J. Cowell PhD
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  2. Jeremy W. Bray PhD
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  3. Jesse M. Hinde BA
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Correspondence to Alexander J. Cowell PhD.

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Cowell, A.J., Bray, J.W. & Hinde, J.M. The Cost of Screening and Brief Intervention in Employee Assistance Programs. J Behav Health Serv Res 39, 55–67 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-011-9253-z

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