Research to Improve Vocational Rehabilitation: Employment Barriers and Strategies for Clients who are Blind Or Visually Impaired

1997 ◽  
Vol 91 (4) ◽  
pp. 377-392 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Kirchner ◽  
G. Johnson ◽  
D. Harkins
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Vocational Rehabilitation ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Visually Impaired ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Employment Barriers ◽  
Rehabilitation Agency

This study identified factors that lead to or impede competitive job placements for clients of a state blindness rehabilitation agency. The authors conducted focus groups with the agency's service providers and administered surveys to adults who are blind or visually impaired and to employers. The survey data analysis compared persons who were employed with persons who were not employed but were interested in working and with persons who were not working and were not interested in working. Also identified were services that employers felt would assist them in hiring or retaining blind or visually impaired workers. Five themes, stated in terms of needs for the agency to address, are presented to summarize the findings.

Functional Factors Related to Vocational Rehabilitation Outcome: Implications for Service Providers and Researchers

1981 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 113-122
Author(s):  
Ross K. Lynch
Keyword(s):  
Vocational Rehabilitation ◽  
Independent Living ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Demographic Factors ◽  
Rehabilitation Outcome ◽  
Severity Of Disability ◽  
Functional Factors ◽  
Rehabilitation Agency ◽  
Counselor Performance ◽  
Relationship Of

This study investigated the relationship of functional and demographic factors to vocational rehabilitation outcome among a sample of legislatively mandated “severaly physically disabled” clients served by a public vocational rehabilitation agency. Critical functional and demographic factors were identified which were used to construct client typologies and their associated probabilities of vocational rehabilitation success. Implications of a prediction model based on functional factor are discussed in regard to rehabilitation plan development, Independent Living Rehabilitation, defining severity of disability, measuring counselor performance, and with respect to improving rehabilitation research and program evaluation techniques.

Pathway of Employment From Uncovering Barriers to Discovering Hope: Nontraditional, Student-Centered, Relationship-Based Approach

2019 ◽  
Vol 101 (3) ◽  
pp. 395-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Young P. Hong ◽  
Rana Hong ◽  
Dara Lewis ◽  
Diane Williams
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Nontraditional Student ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Employment Barriers ◽  
Social Work Theory ◽  
Self Sufficiency ◽  
Student Focus

This study explores the experiences and perspectives of service providers with regard to the process of psychological self-sufficiency (PSS) among students in the Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) program. Based on a social work theory of PSS as our organizing framework, combined qualitative content analysis (inductive to deductive) was conducted with two service provider focus groups ( n = 16) and three student focus groups ( n = 27). The overarching theme of nontraditional, student-centered, holistic staff approaches which lead to the pathway from uncovering perceived employment barriers to discovering employment hope emerged with four phenomenological categories. The findings supported the adaptations of service providers’ different roles when providing student-centered approach in service delivery to reach maximal PSS for a better outcome in case management.

scholarly journals A study of mapping usual care and unmet need for vocational rehabilitation and psychological support following major trauma in five health districts in the UK

2020 ◽  
pp. 026921552097177
Author(s):  
Jade Kettlewell ◽  
Stephen Timmons ◽  
Kay Bridger ◽  
Denise Kendrick ◽  
Blerina Kellezi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Focus Groups ◽  
Vocational Rehabilitation ◽  
Usual Care ◽  
Major Trauma ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Psychological Support ◽  
Trauma Survivors ◽  
Systems Methodology ◽  
Trauma Networks ◽  
The Uk

Objective: To identify where and how trauma survivors’ rehabilitation needs are met after trauma, to map rehabilitation across five UK major trauma networks, and to compare with recommended pathways. Design: Qualitative study (interviews, focus groups, workshops) using soft-systems methodology to map usual care across trauma networks and explore service gaps. Publicly available documents were consulted. CATWOE (Customers, Actors, Transformation, Worldview, Owners, Environment) was used as an analytic framework to explore the relationship between stakeholders in the pathway. Setting: Five major trauma networks across the UK. Subjects: 106 key rehabilitation stakeholders (service providers, trauma survivors) were recruited to interviews ( n = 46), focus groups ( n = 4 groups, 17 participants) and workshops ( n = 5 workshops, 43 participants). Interventions: None. Results: Mapping of rehabilitation pathways identified several issues: (1) lack of vocational/psychological support particularly for musculoskeletal injuries; (2) inconsistent service provision in areas located further from major trauma centres; (3) lack of communication between acute and community care; (4) long waiting lists (up to 12 months) for community rehabilitation; (5) most well-established pathways were neurologically focused. Conclusions: The trauma rehabilitation pathway is complex and varies across the UK with few, if any patients following the recommended pathway. Services have developed piecemeal to address specific issues, but rarely meet the needs of individuals with multiple impairments post-trauma, with a lack of vocational rehabilitation and psychological support for this population.

scholarly journals Understanding the Employment Barriers and Support Needs of People Living with Psychosis

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Hampson ◽  
Richard Hicks ◽  
Bruce Watt
Keyword(s):  
Focus Groups ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Public Awareness ◽  
Community Sample ◽  
Support Needs ◽  
Job Seeking ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Stakeholder Groups ◽  
Employment Barriers

This study investigated the employment barriers and support needs of people living with psychosis. A purposive community sample of 137 volunteers drawn from six key stakeholder groups were invited to participate in focus groups and semi-structured individual interviews to elicit their perceptions on the employment barriers and support needs of people living with psychosis. The stakeholder groups included in this study were people with lived experience of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, carers, health professionals, employers, employment service providers, and community members. Data obtained from 14 focus groups and 31 semi-structured individual interviews were transcribed, imported into NVivo 10, and coded for purposes of thematic analysis. The results of this study revealed that the employment barriers and support needs of people living with psychosis were multiple and diverse. The main employment barriers identified were interpersonal in nature, notably stigma and discrimination. Employment assistance, particularly in the area of job seeking, was the most frequently identified employment support need. The findings of this study suggest that a broad-ranging and collaborative approach is needed across multiple sectors to overcome employment barriers and improve employment outcomes for people living with psychosis. This would include increased public awareness, recovery-oriented health services, effective employment services, training across multiple sectors, and removal of disincentives to work.

Perceptions of a Collaborative Professional Learning Program: Seeing the “Bigger Picture”

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 290-303
Author(s):  
P. Charlie Buckley ◽  
Kimberly A. Murza ◽  
Tami Cassel
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Social Communication ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Integrative Approach ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Learning Program ◽  
Speech Language Pathologists ◽  
Related Service

Purpose The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of special education practitioners (i.e., speech-language pathologists, special educators, para-educators, and other related service providers) on their role as communication partners after participation in the Social Communication and Engagement Triad (Buckley et al., 2015 ) yearlong professional learning program. Method A qualitative approach using interviews and purposeful sampling was used. A total of 22 participants who completed participation in either Year 1 or Year 2 of the program were interviewed. Participants were speech-language pathologists, special educators, para-educators, and other related service providers. Using a grounded theory approach (Glaser & Strauss, 1967 ) to data analysis, open, axial, and selective coding procedures were followed. Results Three themes emerged from the data analysis and included engagement as the goal, role as a communication partner, and importance of collaboration. Conclusions Findings supported the notion that educators see the value of an integrative approach to service delivery, supporting students' social communication and engagement across the school day but also recognizing the challenges they face in making this a reality.

Information-seeking to Support Personal and Community Wellbeing: Report of a study of New Zealand Men Using Focus Groups

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peta Wellstead
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Support Services ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Structural Constraints ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Groupes De Discussion

This paper reports part of an ongoing study exploring the information behaviour of New Zealand men during periods of diminished health and wellbeing. Focus groups were used for this iteration of the study. Results indicate that New Zealand men face both personal and structural constraints to their information-seeking during periods when their health and wellbeing may be compromised. This study highlights that service providers need to develop more effective information delivery mechanisms and support services for men. These services need to be appealing to men and reflect men’s information seeking preferences. The role of LIS professionals in supporting this endeavour is discussed. Cet article présente une étude en cours explorant le comportement informationnel d’ hommes néo-zélandais durant des périodes où leur état de santé et de bien-être est amoindri. Des groupes de discussion ont été utilisés pour cette itération de l'étude. Les résultats indiquent que les hommes en Nouvelle-Zélande font face à des contraintes à la fois  personnelles et structurelles dans leur recherche d'information pendant les périodes où leur santé et leur bien-être peuvent être affaiblis. Cette étude met en évidence le besoin pour les fournisseurs de services de développer des mécanismes de diffusion de l'information plus efficaces et des services de soutien pour les hommes. Ces services doivent être attrayants et refléter les préférences des hommes dans leurs recherches d’information. Le rôle des professionnels de l'information dans le soutien à cette entreprise est discuté.

Taking Aim at Attack Advertising

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Fridkin ◽  
Patrick Kenney
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Data Sources ◽  
Empirical Validation ◽  
Negative Campaigning ◽  
Senate Elections ◽  
Campaign Messages ◽  
Negative Messages ◽  
The Impact

This book develops and tests the “tolerance and tactics theory of negativity.” The theory argues that citizens differ in their tolerance of negative campaigning. Also, candidates vary in the tactics used to attack their opponents, with negative messages varying in their relevance to voters and in the civility of their tone. The interplay between citizens’ tolerance of negativity and candidates’ negative messages helps clarify when negative campaigning will influence citizens’ evaluations of candidates and their likelihood of voting. A diverse set of data sources was collected from U.S. Senate elections (e.g., survey data, experiments, content analysis, focus groups) across several years to test the theory. The tolerance and tactics theory of negativity receives strong empirical validation. First, people differ systematically in their tolerance for negativity, and their tolerance changes over the course of the campaign. Second, people’s levels of tolerance consistently and powerfully influence how they assess negative messages. Third, the relevance and civility of negative messages consistently influence citizens’ assessments of candidates competing for office. That is, negative messages focusing on relevant topics and utilizing an uncivil tone produce significant changes in people’s impressions of the candidates. Furthermore, people’s tolerance of negativity influences their susceptibility to negative campaigning. Specifically, relevant and uncivil messages are most influential for people who are least tolerant of negative campaigning. The relevance and civility of campaign messages also alter people’s likelihood of voting, and the impact of negative messages on turnout is more consequential for people with less tolerance of negativity.

scholarly journals An Evaluation of the Formative Experiences of Students Enrolled in Postgraduate Studies in Education: Case Study in Northern Mexico

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 4790
Author(s):  
Brenda Imelda Boroel Cervantes ◽  
José Alfonso Jiménez Moreno ◽  
Salvador Ponce Ceballos ◽  
José Sánchez Santamaría
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Training Context ◽  
Northern Mexico ◽  
Postgraduate Studies ◽  
Successful Design ◽  
Formative Experiences

The educational journey in postgraduate programs is linked to the actors, processes and results, setting the tone for different approaches from the perspective of characterization, development and evaluation. It is summarized in a sequential manner in four stages: entry to the program, progress within the program, and the final educational stretch, where the instructor/tutor plays an important part and obtaining the diploma or degree. The goal of this research was to evaluate, using the students’ perceptions, formative experiences as a result of their academic journey in postgraduate programs within education in Northern Mexico. We have used a case study based on the focus groups technique, applied to a sample of cases comprised of students enrolled in their final educational stage. The information was analyzed using inductive data analysis. The main results were grouped into three meta categories: (1) development of professional skills for the successful design of the intervention proposal, which unfolded into four categories; (2) the role of the tutor during the formative process, consisting of four analysis categories and (3) contributions of the teaching staff in their profession, consisting of two categories. These trends also evidence the formative abundance in the personal, academic and social training context of the students.

User-centered Requirements for Patient Fluid Intake Monitoring Support

2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
pp. 736-740
Author(s):  
Ellen J. Bass ◽  
Andrew J. Abbate ◽  
Yaman Noaiseh ◽  
Rose Ann DiMaria-Ghalili
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Focus Group ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Fluid Intake ◽  
Fluid Consumption ◽  
Registered Dietitians ◽  
Group Data ◽  
Focus Group Data

There is a need to support patients with monitoring liquid intake. This work addresses development of requirements for real-time and historical displays and reports with respect to fluid consumption as well as alerts based on critical clinical thresholds. We conducted focus groups with registered nurses and registered dietitians in order to identify the information needs and alerting criteria to support fluid consumption measurement. This paper presents results of the focus group data analysis and the related requirements resulting from the analysis.

Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Outcomes of Youth With Disabilities From a Midwestern State

2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica M. Awsumb ◽  
Fabricio E. Balcazar ◽  
Francisco Alvarado
Keyword(s):  
Vocational Rehabilitation ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Transition Program ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
System Level ◽  
Youth With Disabilities ◽  
Transition Outcomes ◽  
Rehabilitation Agency ◽  
Better Than ◽  
Gender Type

Purpose: To examine the outcomes (rehabilitated vs. nonrehabilitated) of youth with disabilities (ages 14–22 years) participating in the transition program from a midwestern state.Method: Five years of vocational rehabilitation transition data (N = 6,252) were analyzed to determine what demographic and system-level factors were related to rehabilitated or nonrehabilitated outcomes.Results: Postsecondary and employment outcomes were predicted by race, gender, type of disability, office region, total number of services, and case expenditure. Hispanic youth had the highest percentage of rehabilitation; males faired significantly better than females and participants in small towns were significantly more likely to be rehabilitated than participants living in large urban areas.Conclusions: Based on the data findings, it was recommended that the vocational rehabilitation agency alters and updates its transition program. Strategies to help youth with disabilities achieve positive employment and postsecondary educational outcomes are discussed.

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