Improving Vocational Outcomes in Arthritis

January 5, 2016 updated by: University of Alabama at Birmingham

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.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

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.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

326

Phase

  • Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

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

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 55 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

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

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: Usual Care
Behavioral: Standard of care
No education or behavioral intervention
Active Comparator: Enrollment Intervention
The intervention consists of training sessions to help prospective VR clients with ARMD successfully enter and complete the vocational rehabilitation (VR) program, and training sessions for a randomly selected group of VR professionals to help them serve VR clients with ARMD more effectively.
Behavioral: Vocational counseling intervention
Behavioral: Reading materials for control participants

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Improved vocational outcomes
Time Frame: baseline to 30 months
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.
baseline to 30 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Alabama at Birmingham

Collaborators

National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)

Investigators

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

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

  • M White, R Maisiak, P Fine and K Straaton. Factors associated with low vocational capability in persons with musculoskeletal work disability. Abstract in Arthritis and Rheumatism, 42(9):S222, 1999.
  • R Maisiak, P Fine, M White and K Straaton. Barriers to participation in state-federal vocational rehabilitation servies for persons with musculoskeletal disability Abstract in Arthritis and Rheumatism, 42(9):S222, 1999.
  • White M, Maisiak R, Overman L, Paolone F, and Fine P. Increased enrollment of persons unemployed due to musculoskeletal disability to vocational rehabilitation services. Arthritis and Rheumatism, 43(9):S285, 2000.
  • Maisiak R, White W, Overman L, Paolone F, and P Fine. Health status (SF-36) barriers to return to work for persons with musculoskeletal disability. Arthritis and Rheumatism, 43(9):S285,2000.
  • Maisiak R, White W, Overman L, Paolone F, and P Fine. Improved return to work for arthritis patients in a supplementary state-federal vocational rehabilitation program. Arthritis and Rheumatism,44(9):S211,2001.
  • White M, Maisiak R, Overman L, Paolone F, and Fine P. Development of a work motivation scale for predicting return to work of arthritis patients. Arthritis and Rheumatism,44(9):S165,2001.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

January 1, 1997

Study Completion

December 1, 2001

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 3, 1999

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 3, 1999

First Posted (Estimate)

November 4, 1999

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

January 6, 2016

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 5, 2016

Last Verified

September 1, 2015

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • P60AR020614 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)
  • NIAMS-024
  • Sub: EEHSR3

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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