Featured App: Employee & Family Resources (EFR)

Life happens. A hard week at work, a worried parent, a teenager who seems a little off, a loss nobody saw coming. For more than sixty years, Employee & Family Resources has been the team people turn to when life gets heavy. Today that support fits in a pocket. The EFR app, built with AppPresser, lets people connect with a counselor, check in on their own well being and explore trusted resources whenever they need them, and its users have given it a perfect 5.0 star rating on iPhone.

In this featured app spotlight, we take a closer look at the people behind EFR, what the app does, who it serves, and why it is such a strong example of what happens when a WordPress site and a mobile app work together.

Who Is Behind the EFR App

Employee & Family Resources, known as EFR, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit human services organization headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. Its mission is “Helping People Manage Life’s Challenges to Reach Their Full Potential,” and it delivers prevention, intervention and treatment services for behavioral health, all under one roof and in a judgement free environment.

EFR’s roots go back to 1964, when it was founded as the Iowa affiliate of the National Council on Alcoholism. In 1975 it created Iowa’s first Employee Assistance Program, an idea that was still new in American workplaces at the time. That program grew into the heart of what EFR does today. The organization now serves more than 300,000 employees and students in all 50 states.

EFR is led by CEO Tammy Hoyman, who joined the organization as an EAP and SAP counselor in 1996 and has served as CEO since 2009. In EFR’s own Six Decades of Heart podcast episode, she reflects on the growth of its workplace, student and substance abuse programs, and on how mental health care in workplaces, schools and communities has changed over the years. In 2024, EFR celebrated its 60th anniversary.

Beyond its national workplace work, EFR remains deeply rooted in central Iowa. Its community services include substance abuse, problem gambling and suicide prevention, counseling for individuals, couples and families in the Des Moines metro, substance abuse evaluation and referral, and juvenile diversion programs.

What the EFR App Does

As EFR puts it, mental health support goes where you go. The app is the front door to the Employee Assistance Program and the Student Assistance Program, designed so people can get started quickly with simple, clear navigation, often at the exact moment they decide to reach out.

The app includes:

• Use EAP Benefit, a direct path into the confidential counseling and resources an employer or school provides.
• Live Chat, so people can schedule an appointment with a masters level counselor from inside the app.
• Mental Health Check In, including the DASS 21 assessment and the EFR Benefit Recommendation Assessment, which help people understand their emotional well being and suggest personalized topics.
• A resource library of articles, podcasts and webinars to explore at your own pace.
• The EFR blog, with practical, warm writing on everyday challenges.
• Podcasts, including EFR’s Emotion Well podcast, playable right in the app.
• Webinars that members can register for from their phones.
• My Library, where saved favorites stay in one place to return to anytime.

The app is free on iPhone and iPad and is also available on Android. It first launched in 2021 and was most recently updated in August 2026.

App Screenshots

Here is a look at the app. Notice how calm and uncluttered the Member Portal feels, with every option one tap away. When someone opens an app like this, they may be having a hard day, and the design respects that.

Test Drive the App

The best way to understand what makes the EFR app special is to try it yourself. Download the free app, browse the blog and podcasts, and see how simple it is to find support.

Key Features That Stand Out

Help Is One Tap Away

The hardest part of getting help is often the first step. The EFR app shortens that step to a single tap. Use EAP Benefit and Live Chat sit right at the top of the Member Portal, so someone who decides to reach out can schedule time with a masters level counselor without hunting through a website or waiting on hold.

Check In With Yourself

Not everyone knows exactly what they need. The Mental Health Check In offers the DASS 21, a widely used screening for depression, anxiety and stress, along with EFR’s own Benefit Recommendation Assessment. Together they help people put words to how they are feeling and point them toward topics and services that fit.

A Library Built for Real Life

EFR’s resource library covers the challenges people actually face, from caring for aging parents to stress, relationships and parenting. Articles, podcasts and webinars live side by side, and members can save favorites to My Library to come back to later.

Emotion Well, In Your Pocket

EFR’s Emotion Well podcast brings in counselors, coaches and community leaders for honest conversations about well being. Episodes play right inside the app, so members can listen on a walk, a commute or a quiet evening at home.

Built for Workplaces and Schools

The same app serves both the Employee Assistance Program and the Student Assistance Program. Whether a member came through an employer or a school district, they land in a single, consistent experience.

A Perfect 5.0 Rating

Ratings are one of the most honest signals an app can earn. At the time of writing, the EFR app holds a perfect 5.0 rating from its iPhone users. For an app that people often open during a stressful moment, that score matters. It suggests the app is doing exactly what it should: making support feel easy, clear and welcoming.

It also reflects the trust EFR has built over six decades. When people rely on an organization for something as personal as mental health, the experience has to feel safe and simple. Meeting that standard is a real accomplishment.

Watch: Emotion Well

EFR shares its Emotion Well conversations on YouTube as well as in the app. In this episode, host Johanna Dunlevy talks with Mia Escobar, an ICF certified life and performance coach at EFR, about coaching the person, not the problem.

Who the App Serves

The EFR app serves a wide community, united by one goal: getting people the support they need. It is built for:

• Employees whose employers offer EFR’s Employee Assistance Program, along with their household members.
• Students and families served through EFR’s Student Assistance Program in partnering schools.
• Managers and HR teams who want an easy way to point people toward help.
• Anyone exploring their well being who wants trustworthy articles, podcasts and webinars.
• Central Iowa community members connecting with EFR’s local counseling and prevention programs.

With more than 300,000 employees and students served across all 50 states, the app gives EFR a consistent way to reach people wherever they live and work.

EFR in the Press

EFR’s work has been covered in the Des Moines business and community press:

• Childhood trauma, the invisible impact on workers’ health, Business Record
• Employee & Family Resources Receives Opioid Prevention Grant, CITYVIEW

What This App Shows About AppPresser

The EFR website, efr.org, runs on WordPress, and that matters. The site already holds EFR’s blog, podcast episodes, webinars and resources. With AppPresser, that content does not need to be rebuilt somewhere else. The app draws from the same WordPress site the team already manages every day.

For a behavioral health organization, that is a big deal. When the team publishes a new article, adds a podcast episode or schedules a webinar, the app stays in step automatically. Counselors and staff can focus on people, not on maintaining two separate systems.

The EFR app also shows that an AppPresser app can do much more than display content. Assessments, chat based scheduling, saved favorites and a member portal all work together in one native experience. That is what turns a helpful website into a tool people keep on their home screen.

Congratulations to Tammy Hoyman and the entire Employee & Family Resources team on building an app that has earned a perfect 5.0 rating.

Do You Want Your Own App?

If your organization already runs on WordPress, launching your app with AppPresser is simple. Your app pulls directly from the website you already manage, so every update you make to your site appears in your app automatically. Ready to get started on your app right now? Check out our pricing page.

Not on WordPress yet? AppPresser can still help. Our team can move your website onto WordPress and then set up your app, so everything works together from the start. And if you need something more tailored, from custom features to a completely custom app, our custom development services have you covered.

Prefer to talk it through? Book a quick call with our team and we’ll walk you through your options.

If you need help or have any questions, tell us about your organization and what you’d like your app to do, and we’ll get back to you with a clear answer on costs and next steps.