Dain Successfully Completes First Year of EAPA Korea Branch... "Ushering in the Era of Global EAP"

The year 2025 marks the official launch of the Korean branch of the Employee Assistance Professionals Association (EAPA), established through a partnership between Nudge Healthcare's EAP-specialized subsidiary "Dain" and EAPA, the global Employee Assistance Professionals Association. The establishment of the Korean branch is considered the first case in which the domestic EAP industry, previously lacking clear standards and operational systems, has begun to build an institutional foundation based on international standards.

According to Nudge Healthcare on December 10, in recent years, the need for corporate mental health management in Korea has rapidly increased due to factors such as long working hours, a rise in burnout, and growing demand for mental health care driven by generational changes. The Journal of Employee Assistance (JEA) also analyzed Korea as a country where the digital-based EAP model is growing rapidly, highlighting the urgent need to establish psychological safety nets within organizations. Against this backdrop, the official launch of the EAPA Korea Branch is drawing attention as a turning point for establishing a specialized and standardized EAP system tailored to the Korean corporate environment.

EAPA is the largest association in the employee assistance program field, with participation from over 35 countries worldwide. It leads the global EAP industry by establishing industry standards, operating CEAP (Certified Employee Assistance Professional) training, and hosting international conferences.

"Dain" of Nudge Healthcare played a key role in laying the foundation for the institutionalization of EAP in Korea by obtaining approval for the Korean branch from EAPA headquarters in April 2025. The EAPA Korea Branch is composed of professionals specializing in EAP operations, research, and counseling. Its primary objectives are to establish standards for the domestic EAP industry and to build systems for education and research.

As Korea's first EAP company, Dain was selected as the founding entity of the EAPA Korea Branch, recognized for its 20 years of accumulated experience in service operations and building corporate mental health infrastructure. In 2016, Dain hosted the Asia Pacific Employee Assistance Roundtable (APEAR), the largest EAP international event in the Asia-Pacific region, in Seoul, gaining experience in international cooperation with major EAP institutions across Asia. This has led to evaluations that Dain possesses sufficient expertise to lead the operation of the Korean branch and build a global network.

Since the launch of the EAPA Korea Branch, Dain has established operational systems for the branch while expanding its collaborative base with domestic academic societies and medical institutions. It has set up frameworks for cooperation with the Korean Counseling Association, the Korean Counseling Psychological Association, and the Korean Coaching Association to expand EAP professional training and academic exchanges. Dain has also discussed the possibility of collaboration with the Corporate Mental Health Research Institute at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital to build corporate mental health assessment and research models.

Furthermore, in October, Dain attended the EAPA conference held in San Francisco, USA, where it interacted with global branch representatives and reviewed plans for introducing the CEAP qualification and the Employee Assistance Fundamental (EA Fundamental) course to Korea. Through this, Dain secured preliminary procedures for designing a Korean-style EAP education model and applying international standards.

Based on its first-year activities, the Korean branch is also preparing to publish the "Korea EAP Performance Report." The report will include the status of EAP adoption by domestic companies, issues by industry and job category, effectiveness analysis by intervention type, organizational change cases, and comparisons with global models. This is expected to provide practical and validated EAP operational standards tailored to the Korean corporate environment.

Notably, in April 2026, APEAR will be held in Seoul, hosted by Dain. Attracting an international EAP event alongside the launch of the Korean branch signifies that Korea is emerging as a leading country in global discussions centered on the digital-based EAP ecosystem.

Song Minkyoung, CEO of Dain, stated, "The launch of the EAPA Korea Branch is an important starting point for elevating the professionalism and educational system of the domestic EAP industry to an international level." She added, "We will expand cooperation with domestic academic societies and institutions, systematize Korean-style EAP data and standards, and contribute to fostering a healthy organizational culture for companies and society." She continued, "With the hosting of APEAR in Seoul in 2026, the global standing of Korean EAP will take another leap forward."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.