Expatriate Assistance

Our Expatriate Employee Assistance Program (EAP) was developed out of a realization that marginal performance at work and difficult adjustments abroad are frequently caused by the overlapping between the dynamics of cultural adjustment and the ability to cope with personal and occupational stress, family difficulties, mental health issues, and even substance abuse. For this reason, the Expatriate EAP simultaneously addresses both cultural adaptation and assistance with problems to facilitate both cultural adjustment and enhanced work performance.

The Expatriate EAP fills a service gap by effectively integrating traditional EAP counseling services with proactive outreach “check-ins” and cultural adjustment coaching. Our model reduces the stigma that surrounds traditional and domestic EAP counseling by promoting utilization for “normal and expected” concerns related to cultural adjustment and adaptation. Expats and families can work through routine adjustment issues while having access to counselors that can manage and treat adjustment issues when they overlap with marital conflict, depression, parenting problems, grief, anxiety, alcohol abuse, and other problems encountered in domestic EAP.

Local “in-country” providers with an intimate knowledge of the host country environment, as well as professional credentials to provide solution-focused counseling interventions have delivered both outreach and counseling services.

Chestnut Global Partners' (CGP) Expatriate services include these core elements:

• Pre-departure orientation meetings with new outbound expats to explain the program and screen for any potential issues that may arise.
• 24 hour, seven days per week, 365 days per year telephone access to a qualified globally minded counselor in the U.S.A.
• Up to six face-to-face visits (or telephone counseling when needed) with an in-country behavioral health professional or, when necessary, a CGP qualified international counselor.
• Provider partner development and management for each location.
• Quarterly and annual utilization reporting.
• Customized promotional materials and communications in multiple languages.
• Access to interactive websites, work-life benefits, elder care services (inside the U.S.A. only), and support services for “trailing” spouses.
• Administrative overhead and account management.
• Quarterly outreach phone calls and email messages to inform the expat and spouse of the program and to assist with any transitional issues.
• Mental health crisis intervention for acute or urgent problems.
• Surveys to measure satisfaction and program outcomes.