Abstract
Objective
To provide a preliminary evaluation of the effectiveness of an online resource for
job seekers with multiple sclerosis (MS).
Design
Randomized controlled design.
Setting
Community-dwelling cohort.
Participants
Adults (N = 95) with relapsing-remitting or progressive MS were randomly assigned
to one of two groups. Forty-five accessed an email delivered, 7 module resource, Work
and MS, over a 4 week period. Waitlist control participants (n=50) were offered the
opportunity to access Work and MS 4 weeks postenrollment.
Main Outcome Measures
Primary outcomes focused on vocational interests (My Vocational Situation Scale) and
self-efficacy in job-seeking activities (Job-Procurement Self Efficacy Scale). Secondary
outcomes focused on perceived workplace difficulties (Multiple Sclerosis Work Difficulties
Questionnaire [MSWDQ]), optimism (Life Orientation Test – Revised), and mood (Patient
Health Questionnaire-9).
Results
Intention-to-treat analyses revealed pre-post gains: participants who accessed Work
and MS reported improved confidence in their career goals (My Vocational Situation
Scale g=.55; 95% confidence interval [CI], .14–.96; P=.008) and positively reappraised potential workplace difficulties (MSWDQ g range, .42–.47; P range, .023–.042). The effect on job self-efficacy was not significant, but changed
in the expected direction (g=.17; 95% CI, –.23 to .57; P=.409). Completer data revealed larger, significant effect estimates (g range, .52–.64; P range, .009–.035).
Conclusions
Findings provide preliminary support for the utility of a job information resource,
Work and MS, to augment existing employment services. The results also suggest the
need to test employment-ready interventions in a larger study population. This might
include the addition of online peer support to increase intervention compliance.
Keywords
List of abbreviations:
CI (Confidence interval), MS (Multiple sclerosis), MSWDQ (Multiple Sclerosis Work Difficulties Questionnaire), PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire-9)To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: September 16, 2017
Footnotes
Clinical Trial Registration No.: ACTRN12617000728336.
Disclosures: none.
Identification
Copyright
© 2017 by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine
