Talk to the Veterans Crisis Line now
U.S. flag
An official website of the United States government
Veterans Benefits and Health Care About VA Find a VA Location

VA Health Systems Research

Go to the VA ORD website
Go to the QUERI website

HSR Citation Abstract

Search | Search by Center | Search by Source | Keywords in Title

Cost-effectiveness of supported employment for veterans with spinal cord injuries.

Sinnott PL, Joyce V, Su P, Ottomanelli L, Goetz LL, Wagner TH. Cost-effectiveness of supported employment for veterans with spinal cord injuries. Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation. 2014 Jul 1; 95(7):1254-61.

Dimensions for VA is a web-based tool available to VA staff that enables detailed searches of published research and research projects.

If you have VA-Intranet access, click here for more information vaww.hsrd.research.va.gov/dimensions/

VA staff not currently on the VA network can access Dimensions by registering for an account using their VA email address.    Search Dimensions for VA for this citation
* Don't have VA-internal network access or a VA email address? Try searching the free-to-the-public version of Dimensions


Abstract:

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the cost-effectiveness of a supported employment (SE) intervention that had been previously found effective in veterans with spinal cord injuries (SCIs). DESIGN: Cost-effectiveness analysis, using cost and quality-of-life data gathered in a trial of SE for veterans with SCI. SETTING: SCI centers in the Veterans Health Administration. PARTICIPANTS: Subjects (N = 157) who completed a study of SE in 6 SCI centers. Subjects were randomly assigned to the intervention of SE (n = 81) or treatment as usual (n = 76). INTERVENTION: A vocational rehabilitation program of SE for veterans with SCI. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Costs and quality-adjusted life years, which were estimated from the Veterans Rand 36-Item Health Survey, extrapolated to Veterans Rand 6 Dimension utilities. RESULTS: Average cost for the SE intervention was $1821. In 1 year of follow-up, estimated total costs, including health care utilization and travel expenses, and average quality-adjusted life years were not significantly different between groups, suggesting the Spinal Cord Injury Vocational Integration Program intervention was not cost-effective compared with usual care. CONCLUSIONS: An intensive program of SE for veterans with SCI, which is more effective in achieving competitive employment, is not cost-effective after 1 year of follow-up. Longer follow-up and a larger study sample will be necessary to determine whether SE yields benefits and is cost-effective in the long run for a population with SCI.




Questions about the HSR website? Email the Web Team

Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.