Multidisciplinary Model to Guide Employment Amongst PLWSCI
Condition: Spinal Cord Injury
MeSH terms: Spinal Cord Injuries
Study type: Observational

Summary: 
      Spinal cord injury often results in complete or partial loss of functioning of the upper and
      or lower limbs, leading to the affected individual experiencing difficulties in performing
      activities of daily living. This in turn results in reduced participation in social,
      religious, recreational and economic activities (employment). Globally, there is a low
      employment rate (11-67%) amongst PLWSCI. In South Africa, according to Statistics South
      Africa, the unemployment rate of people with disabilities is estimated to be 25.2%. However,
      there is no information available on employment amongst PLWSCI in South Africa.

      Furthermore, there is insufficient knowledge related to SCI in South Africa to enable a model
      to be developed and implemented. Data on the current SCI rehabilitation practices (with
      specific reference to vocational rehabilitation); employment status and factors (both
      personal and environmental); barriers and facilitators of employment amongst PLWSCI is
      limited. This information is needed to develop a return to work model for individuals with
      SCI in South Africa.

      In South Africa, a legal framework exists that promotes the employment as well as assistance
      of people with disabilities in the workplace, such as: the Constitution of Republic of South
      Africa, 1996; the Employment Equity Act (EEA), 1998; the Promotion of Equality and Prevention
      of Unfair Discrimination Act (PEPUDA), 2000; Labour Relations Act (LRA), 1995; Skills
      Development Act (SDA), 1998; Public Service Act (PSA), 1994; Basic Conditions of Employment
      Act (BCEA), 1997 and the Integrated National Disability Strategy (2000). However,
      rehabilitation interventions provided in rehabilitation institutions are mainly medical, with
      limited attempts to prepare those with SCI to return to gainful employment. There is
      therefore a need for a well-coordinated, multi-sectorial, multi-disciplinary and
      multi-factorial rehabilitation intervention that will promote the employment of PLWSCI in
      South Africa.
    

Detailed description: 
      This is a cross-sectional study in which mixed methods will be used in various phases of the
      study. Mixed methods involve the collection and analysis of both quantitative and qualitative
      data in a single study. Data are collected concurrently or sequentially and integrated at one
      or more stages during the research process. This study will be divided into 3 phases with
      stages to answer the objectives.

      Phase one of this study will attempt to answer objectives 1-3 of the study. Stage 1 will
      include a systematic review of literature to identify the most effective vocational
      rehabilitation interventions amongst PLWSCI. Stage 2 will determine rehabilitation services
      rendered to individual who sustain SCI in South Africa with an intention of identifying gaps
      in vocational rehabilitation practices by retrospectively analysing medical files. This phase
      will be concluded by a focus group to further explore current vocational rehabilitation
      practices rendered to PLWSCI (Stage3).

      Phase two will answer objectives 4-5. Stage 1 of this phase will determine the employment
      status as well as factors that influence employment amongst PLWSCI. Stage 2 will determine
      the barriers and facilitators of employment amongst PLWSCI. Results obtained from phase 1 to
      2, will be utilised to by the researcher to develop the proposed model.

      The final phase will aim to develop, validate and refine the model. Stage 1 of this phase
      will include the researcher using the information gained in previous phases to develop the
      proposed model. The second stage will include a focus group to validate the content of the
      proposed model. The last stage will included obtaining consensus amongst the stakeholders
      regarding the structure and the content of the proposed model and subsequently refine it.
    

Intervention name(s): Focus groups, semistructured interviews and Delphi rounds
Intervention type(s): Other
Observational model: Ecologic or Community
Time perspective: Cross-Sectional
Sampling method: Probability Sample
Study population: 
        Phase One :

        Rehabilitation Professionals People living with Spinal Cord Injuries Representatives from
        various working environment
      
Keywords: Spinal Cord Injury and Employment