Implementing supported employment as an evidence-based practice.
Supported employment for people with severe mental illness is an evidence-based practice, based on converging findings from eight randomized controlled trials and three quasi-experimental studies. The critical ingredients of supported employment have been well described, and a fidelity scale differentiates supported employment programs from other types of vocational services. The effectiveness of supported employment appears to be generalizable across a broad range of client characteristics and community settings. More research is needed on long-term outcomes and on cost-effectiveness. Access to supported employment programs remains a problem, despite their increasing use throughout the United States. The authors discuss barriers to implementation and strategies for overcoming them based on successful experiences in several states.
Department of Psychology at Indiana University-Perdue University Indiapolis, Indianapolis 46202, USA. gbond@iupui.edu
G R
GR
Bond
D R
DR
Becker
R E
RE
Drake
C A
CA
Rapp
N
N
Meisler
A F
AF
Lehman
M D
MD
Bell
C R
CR
Blyler
D003155:Community Mental Health Centers; D016832:Employment, Supported / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005380:Financing, Government; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D016730:Program Development; D015397:Program Evaluation; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D014481:United States