Work-ordered day as a catalyst of competitive employment success

Abstract

Objective: This purpose of this study was to determine whether participation in the Work-Ordered Day program of the Clubhouse model has a positive effect on vocational outcomes.

Method: The longitudinal study followed a group of individuals with severe mental illness who were randomly assigned either to a Clubhouse program or a Program of Assertive Community Treatment team. Study participants were tracked for 135 weeks. These analyses evaluated the relationship between Work-Ordered Day participation and employment duration for the 43 study participants enrolled in the Clubhouse program who were active throughout the study and competitively employed during the study.

Results: Participation in the Work-Ordered Day program had a significant positive impact on average duration of employment. On average, a 1-hr increase in participation prior to employment led to an increase of 2.3 weeks in competitive employment.

Conclusions and implications for practice: Participants with more Work-Ordered Day program participation prior to employment had significantly longer average competitive employment duration even when controlling for prior work history. Participation in the Work-Ordered Day program is likely to improve work readiness. Further research is warranted to study which elements of the program may foment employment success. This could lead to increased implementation of the Work-Ordered Day program and its elements as precursors to employment for adults with severe mental illness.