Improving Employee Health and Well-being: Inside Allina Health’s New EAP

How Allina Health is Improving Employee Health and Well-being with their New EAP Initiative

Allina Health, renowned for its commitment to patient care excellence, has set a new standard in healthcare with its Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

Partnering with Interactive Digital Solutions (IDS), Enghouse Video, and ViTel Net, Allina Health exemplifies how healthcare organizations can prioritize and improve employee health and well-being to enhance overall organizational resilience and patient care delivery. The program went live for Allina Health employees and their family members on January 29, 2024, and has been delivering wellness and mental health coaching services on an ongoing basis since.

The Need for Employee Well-being Solutions

Recognizing the crucial link between employee well-being and patient care quality, Allina Health’s VP of Operations, Joe Clubb, explains their initiative:

“While our patients remain our top priority, we believe that healthy providers and care teams deliver better care. But to get providers and team members to engage, we needed a solution to deliver well-being and mental health coaching services discreetly and out of view from their peers, which meant it could not be done in our EHR.”

Employee Health and Well-being Challenges

Allina Health faced a critical challenge: providing discreet mental health and well-being support to its workforce without relying on their existing Electronic Health Record (EHR) system. This requirement demanded a solution that integrated seamlessly into their operational workflows while ensuring privacy and efficiency.

Implementation of Discrete Employee Assistance Programs

Allina Health’s EAP program integrates several key elements to maximize its impact on employee health:

Discreet Support Mechanisms

By leveraging technologies independent of their Electronic Health Record (EHR) system, Allina Health ensures confidential access to mental health and well-being support for its employees.

Integrated Workflow Enhancements

Seamless integration into existing operational workflows empowers healthcare teams with real-time collaboration tools and streamlined documentation capabilities, crucial for delivering effective remote well-being services.

Cost-effective Sustainability

The program’s design includes efficient administrative and billing processes to their corporate Employee Well-being Solutions provider, enabling Allina Health to manage costs while providing essential employee support services through payer-based EAP plans.

The Role of IDS, ViTel Net, & Vidyo as Reliable Partners

The collaborative efforts of IDS, Enghouse Video, and ViTel Net exemplify a partnership rooted in client-centricity and innovation. By extending beyond traditional service delivery, IDS demonstrates their commitment to being Allina Health’s best partner, ensuring their solutions not only meet but exceed expectations.

“Through the power of the Vidyo APIs, ViTel Net was able to leverage Allina Health’s existing Enghouse Video infrastructure that IDS manages and supports for them, further reducing the cost of implementation and enabling Well-being Navigators and Mental Health Consultants to leverage tools they are comfortable with in the context of structured workflows,” explains Rob Solomon, EVP of Operations at IDS. “Technical support is simple too since the users just call the same IDS help desk number they have been calling for years regardless of whether the issue is Enghouse Video or ViTel Net related.”

IDS stepped in not just as a service provider, but as an extension of Allina Health’s team, collaborating closely with Enghouse Video and ViTel Net to design and implement a solution that met Allina Health’s exact specifications:

Technology Integration Expertise

IDS leveraged their expertise in video collaboration solutions to integrate Enghouse Video’s secure and scalable platform with Allina Health’s infrastructure. This integration facilitated real-time communication and documentation essential for remote well-being services.

Workflow Optimization

Understanding the nuances of healthcare workflows, IDS worked alongside Allina Health to design and optimize processes. This included configuring the solution to seamlessly match existing practices, ensuring minimal disruption and maximum usability for healthcare providers.

Continuous Support and Customization

Beyond implementation, IDS provided ongoing support, acting as a dedicated resource for technical assistance and system updates. This proactive approach ensured that Allina Health’s EAP program not only launched successfully but will continue to evolve to meet future needs.

Explore IDS’s Technology Solutions for Your EAP Program

Ready to transform your Employee Assistance Program and enhance employee well-being? IDS offers video communication solutions that are tailored to your healthcare workflows, including consultation, design, integration, installation, and managed services.