Earnings

Earnings

Working toward Wellness had the largest effects on long-term annual earnings (an average of $732 per year). Through intensive telephonic outreach from care managers, Working toward Wellness aimed to increase the use of mental health services and to improve employment outcomes for parents with low income who suffered from depression.

Continuous Treatment Team (as compared to Drop-In Center)

Continuous Treatment Team provided participants with an unlimited amount of community-based services and an individualized plan to address their specific needs. Clinical case managers worked closely with clients to create their individualized plan; address their health needs; and help them access housing, transportation, and money management services. The service population included adults without housing who had a severe psychiatric disorder; no history of violent behavior; and an intention to stay in the St. Louis, MO, area for the duration of the study.

Outpatient Treatment (as compared to Drop-In Center)

A mental health clinic in St. Louis, MO, provided the traditional outpatient treatment, which included psychotherapy, psychiatric medication, and assistance in obtaining social services. The service population included adults without housing who had a severe psychiatric disorder, no history of violent behavior, and an intention to stay in the St. Louis area for the duration of the study. The intervention lasted 12 months.

Drop-In Center (as compared to Outpatient Treatment)

Adults without housing were assigned to one of two drop-in centers (one exclusive to women, one for both genders). Drop-in centers provided daytime shelter, food, clothing, showers, recreational activities, and referrals to social services from on-site social workers.  The service population included adults with a mental illness who were also experiencing homelessness. This intervention was implemented in St. Louis, Missouri. The intervention lasted 12 months.

Outpatient Treatment (as compared to Continuous Treatment Team)

A mental health clinic in St. Louis, MO, provided the traditional outpatient treatment, which included psychotherapy, psychiatric medication, and assistance in obtaining social services. The service population included adults without housing who had a severe psychiatric disorder, no history of violent behavior, and an intention to stay in the St. Louis area for the duration of the study. The intervention lasted 12 months.

Continuous Treatment Team (as compared to Outpatient Treatment)

Continuous Treatment Team provided participants with an unlimited amount of community-based services and an individualized plan to address their specific needs. Clinical case managers worked closely with clients to create their individualized plan; address their health needs; and help them access housing, transportation, and money management services. The service population included adults without housing who had a severe psychiatric disorder; no history of violent behavior; and an intention to stay in the St. Louis, MO, area for the duration of the study.

About Face

Intervention (standard name)

The intervention provided access to supplemental resources in the Veterans Employment Resource Center (VERC). The standard VERC services included internet and phone access for job search activities, resume writing supports, video training for applying to and interviewing for jobs, and two video-recorded practice interviews. In addition, the program provided intervention participants with the About Face vocational manual and in-person classes during the week following study enrollment.

About Face—Self Study

Intervention (standard name)

The About Face—Self Study intervention provided participants with a vocational manual titled About Face in addition to standard services from the Veterans Employment Resource Center (VERC). The standard VERC services included internet and phone access for job search activities, resume writing supports, video training for applying to and interviewing for jobs, and two video-recorded practice interviews.

Social Enterprise Intervention (SEI) (as compared with Individual Placement and Support [IPS])

SEI participants received continuous case management over the full 20-month intervention period. For the first eight months, participants attended classes twice a week for one and a half hours each session. In the vocational skills acquisition phase (four months), participants learned vocational skills such as, photography and silk-screening. In the small business skills acquisition phase (four months), participants learned accounting, budgeting, marketing, and management skills.

Individual Placement and Support (IPS) (as compared with Social Enterprise Intervention [SEI])

The IPS model provides customized and long-term vocational, case management, and mental health services to youth experiencing homelessness to help them get a job and maintain their employment. The model follows eight supported-employment principles, all of which relate to theories of psychiatric recovery. IPS participants were assigned to an employment specialist, case manager, and clinician at study enrollment. All study staff were co-located to integrate mental health services with job search supports.

Demonstration to Maintain Independence and Employment (DMIE)

The intervention included enhanced behavioral, medical, and dental services that augmented participants’ standard county health benefits. Services included treatment for chemical dependence, psychological and neuropsychological assessments, and prescription medications above the three-per-month Medicaid limit. The intervention eliminated co-payments for prescription drugs and outpatient services and improved participants’ access to mental health services.