The New Hampshire study of supported employment for people with severe mental illness.

TLDR

The study compared two supported employment models—Group Skills Training and Individual Placement and Support (IPS)—to assess their effectiveness for people with severe mental illness. A randomized trial assigned 143 individuals with severe mental disorders who sought competitive employment to either Group Skills Training or IPS. During an 18‑month follow‑up, participants in IPS were more likely to secure competitive employment, earned more hours and wages, and showed no differences in non‑vocational outcomes compared to Group Skills Training.

Abstract

This study compared supported employment services in 2 contrasting programs: (a) Group Skills Training, a professional rehabilitation agency outside of the mental health center that provided pre-employment skills training and support in obtaining and maintaining jobs, or (b) the Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model, which integrated clinical and vocational services within the mental health center. People with severe mental disorders who expressed interest in competitive employment (N = 143) were randomly assigned to 1 of these 2 programs. Results showed that clients in the IPS program were more likely to be competitively employed throughout most of the 18-month follow-up. Among those who obtained jobs, there were few group differences, although workers in the IPS program did work more total hours and earn more total wages during the 18-month follow-up. There were no group differences on nonvocational outcomes.