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Completed

NCT Number: NCT00223834

Pathways to Vocational Rehabilitation: Enhancing Entry and Retention

This study will examine the barriers and supports for entering and receiving work-related services for veterans with a serious mental illness. It will also determine the effectiveness of a brief motivational interviewing intervention designed to help veterans receive these services.

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Key information

Conditions

Poverty Unemployment

Age range

18 year–55 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital, Bedford

Bedford, Massachusetts, 01730, United States

About this study

Randomized clinical trials and naturalistic studies show that among patients meeting criteria for chronic mental illness, those participating in vocational rehabilitation (VR) have significantly reduced days of inpatient hospitalization. Unfortunately, the majority of eligible adults fail to enter VR and almost half of those who do, drop out or are involuntarily discharged. The reasons for nonparticipation and drop out and their impact on rehabilitation outcomes are poorly understood.

The study will provide needed naturalistic data documenting:

  • the way in which barriers function to reduce entry to services and contribute to the high rate of dropout,
  • the outcomes associated with different patterns of participation, and
  • relative rates of entry and retention in a non-VHA VR exemplar of the Intensive Placement and Support (IPS) model at the Manchester Mental Health Center in Manchester, New Hampshire.

While we need to know more about these "barriers" in order to develop the range of appropriate interventions, the enhancement of client motivation for work and rehabilitation is likely to have a positive impact both on entry and sustained compliance. We are proposing a random assignment single blind trial of a brief Motivational Interviewing (MI) intervention designed to address the low entry and retention rates of veterans with Serious Mental Illness (SMI) in Veterans Health Administration's (VHA) VR services.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Current diagnosis of serious mental illness, present for at least 2 years
  • Is unemployed or underemployed
  • Current episode of un/underemployment is at least 3 months
  • Enrolled to receive services at study site

Exclusion criteria

  • Over the age of 55
  • Non-English speaker
  • Mini-Mental score of less than 20
  • Planning to move more than 30 miles from study site in the next 18 months
  • Previously screened for this study
  • Currently or previously involved in other research studies which may impact variables relevant to this study

Treatment and study plan

single session of Motivational Interviewing

Behavioral

Primary outcomes

  1. Entry and Retention in Vocational Rehabilitation

    Time frame: 18 months post intervention

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

US Department of Veterans Affairs

Fed

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2005
Primary completion
2007
Study completion
2007
First posted
Sep 22, 2005
Registry last updated
Mar 14, 2008

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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