The long-term objectives of this research project are to enhance program participation and improve the employment prospects of people with work disability due to arthritis and related musculoskeletal disorders (ARMD) who are actively seeking vocational (job-related) rehabilitation (VR) services.

This study is designed to compare the employment situations of a group of people receiving a two-part intervention and a group that is not receiving the intervention. The intervention consists of training sessions to help prospective VR clients with ARMD successfully enter and complete the VR program, and training sessions for a randomly selected group of VR professionals to help them serve VR clients with ARMD more effectively.

Condition	Treatment or Intervention	Phase
Arthritis Musculoskeletal Diseases Rheumatic Diseases	Behavior: Vocational counseling intervention  Behavior: Reading materials for control participants	Phase II

Further Study Details: 

Expected Total Enrollment:  325

The long-term objectives of this research project are to enhance program participation and improve the vocational outcomes of people with work disability due to arthritis and related musculoskeletal disorders (ARMD) who are actively seeking vocational rehabilitation services.

Some researchers think that people with work disability due to ARMD seeking vocational rehabilitation (VR) services who are exposed to an "agency access intervention" are more likely to gain entrance to the VR system and be determined eligible for services than are similar people not exposed to the intervention. Further, they think that people with work disability due to ARMD who are determined to be eligible for VR services, and who are exposed to an "agency enhancement intervention" while receiving services, are more likely to become and remain employed upon completion of the VR program than are similar people not exposed to the intervention.

The research design is a randomized, controlled, field experiment comparing the vocational outcomes of a group receiving a two-part intervention to those not receiving the intervention. The design allows us to evaluate separately each component of the intervention. The intervention consists of training sessions to help prospective VR clients with ARMD successfully enter and complete the VR program, and training sessions for a randomly selected group of VR professionals to help them serve VR clients with ARMD more effectively.

If this intervention strategy can significantly increase (1) VR utilization rates; (2) post-service employment rates; and (3) length of post-service employment in a previously underserved group with historically poor VR outcomes, it could have a significant role in reducing the immense impact, nationally, of work disability due to ARMD.

Ages Eligible for Study:  18 Years   -   55 Years,  Genders Eligible for Study:  Both

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

• Resident of Alabama
• Previously employed
• Currently unemployed due to musculoskeletal disability
• Feel capable of work
• Want to work

Exclusion Criteria:

• Not a resident of Alabama
• Unable to work

Alabama
      University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham,  Alabama,  35294,  United States

Study chairs or principal investigators

Richard S. Maisiak, PhD, MSPH,  Principal Investigator,  University of Alabama, Birmingham   

Study ID Numbers:  NIAMS-024; P60 AR20614; Sub: EEHSR3
Record last reviewed:  July 2000
Last Updated:  October 13, 2004
Record first received:  November 3, 1999
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:  NCT00000407
Health Authority: United States: Federal Government
ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on 2005-04-08