Your contact with the Employee Assistance Office (EAO) is confidential within limits as governed by Federal and State regulations. This means that what you discuss with the EAO consultant will be kept confidential and will not be released without your authorization.
However, there are some exceptions. Information related to the following areas may be released, without your authorization, to appropriate persons, e.g. a dean, department chair, principal investigator, director, manager or supervisor, a crisis intervention worker, or a law enforcement officer:
- An unexplained, unusual, or suspicious death
- An abused or neglected child or elder
- A threat to one’s own life or another’s
In addition to these three areas, information may also be released pursuant to a court order, or, under most circumstances, in response to a subpoena in a legal proceeding.
If you have any questions about this confidentiality policy, please raise them with the EAO consultant at the beginning of your meeting.