A multi‐site randomised controlled trial of evidence‐based supported employment for adults with severe and persistent mental illness

Abstract

The results support previous international findings that IPS-supported employment is more effective than non-integrated supported employment. IPS can be successfully implemented this way in Australia, but with a loss of effect strength compared to previous USA trials.

A meta‐regression of the impact of policy on the efficacy of individual placement and support

“…Hoffmann et al and Howard et al and Heslin et al report the efficacy of IPS for the same patient population at two follow‐up periods, so we only included the latter study from both in our meta‐analysis. The meta‐analysis is based on 27 studies (Fig. ).…”

Work participation for people with severe mental illnesses: An integrative review of factors impacting job tenure

“…Focused on principles of rapid job placement in positions matched to individual preferences with ongoing job support, the goal of this approach is competitive employment, defined as ‘community jobs that pay at least minimum wage(s)’ (Becker, Whitely, Bailey & Drake, ; p. 923). Originally developed in the USA, international evidence from multiple randomised controlled trials demonstrates that supported employment can significantly improve employment outcomes for people with severe mental illnesses, including in Australia (Bond et al ., ; Kinoshita, Furukawa, Kinoshita et al ., ; Waghorn et al ., ). Importantly, these trials show that barriers to employment can be overcome with the right support.…”

“…Accumulated evidence over twenty years has established the supported employment approach based on Individual Placement and Support (IPS) as a well‐defined, evidence‐based vocational intervention for people with severe mental illnesses (Bond, Drake & Becker, ; Kinoshita, et al ., ; Waghorn, Dias, Gladman, Harris & Saha, ). Focused on principles of rapid job placement in positions matched to individual preferences with ongoing job support, the goal of this approach is competitive employment, defined as ‘community jobs that pay at least minimum wage(s)’ (Becker, Whitely, Bailey & Drake, ; p. 923).…”

“…While both reviews included the perspectives of job seekers and did not focus specifically on studies of job tenure, they highlight that job tenure is complex. Along with the need to further integrate effective vocational interventions and employment supports into services for people with severe mental illnesses (Waghorn et al ., ), a better understanding of what is known about the factors contributing to job tenure would be useful to guide occupational therapists, other vocational specialists, mental health workers and employers in providing support to workers with severe mental illnesses. Therefore, this review aimed to identify and integrate the available research investigating factors that impact job tenure for people with severe mental illnesses in employment that pays market wages, whether obtained through supported employment, social firms or other vocational services.…”

Outcomes of an individual placement and support programme incorporating principles of the collaborative recovery model

“…Cross-sector partnership IPS programmes in Australia have achieved variable outcomes in terms of employment placement rate. One programme achieved a 57% employment placement rate (Morris, Waghorn, Robson, Moore & Edwards, 2014), whereas others have been less successful, achieving between 28% and 43% employment placement rates (Waghorn, Dias, Gladman & Harris, 2015;Waghorn, Dias, Gladman, Harris & Saha, 2014;Williams, Lloyd, Waghorn & Machingura, 2015). Two of these studies reported on employment duration.…”