RETAINWORKS Impact Evaluation

NCT05167981 | Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: RTN-KS
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 4,000
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The Retaining Employment and Talent after Injury/Illness Network (RETAIN) demonstration is a collaborative effort between the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the Social Security Administration (SSA) to improve employment outcomes for individuals who experience injuries or illnesses that put them at risk of exiting the labor force and relying on disability programs and other public supports in the long term. RETAIN projects include a combination of medical provider services, stay-at-work/return-to-work (SAW/RTW) coordination services, and other SAW/RTW services. This evaluation will focus on the Kansas Department of Commerce's implementation of "RETAINWORKS" statewide. The evaluation will document how the project is implemented, describe enrollees, estimate the project's impacts on enrollees' outcomes, and assess whether the benefits outweigh the costs.

Conditions

Disability

Keywords

disability; employment; unemployment

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Share of enrollees employed in the fourth quarter after enrollment

  Share of enrollees employed in the fourth quarter after enrollment obtained from state unemployment insurance wage records. These files include individual-level wage records for six quarters surrounding enrollment in the study, including the quarter prior to enrollment, the quarter of enrollment, and four post-enrollment quarters.

  Measured over the three months in the fourth quarter after enrollment

• Enrollee earnings in the fourth quarter after enrollment

  Sum of enrollee earnings in the fourth quarter after enrollment obtained from state unemployment insurance wage records. These files include individual-level wage records for six quarters surrounding enrollment in the study, including the quarter prior to enrollment, the quarter of enrollment, and four post-enrollment quarters.

  Measured over the three months in the fourth quarter after enrollment

• Share of enrollees that applied for SSDI or SSI during the 12 months after enrollment

  Share of enrollees that applied for SSDI or SSI during any of the 12 months after enrollment obtained from SSA program data. These files include detailed information about Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) applications SSDI and SSI awards, SSDI and SSI benefit amounts and enrollee characteristics (for enrollees who have ever applied for SSA program benefits)

  Measured in the 12 months after enrollment.

Study Arms (2)

RETAIN Programming

EXPERIMENTAL

The experimental group receives the full set of RETAINWORKS intervention activities.

Other: RETAINWORKS

Control

NO INTERVENTION

The control group receives information and referral to partner services.

Interventions

RETAINWORKS OTHER

The experimental group is eligible to receive the full set of RETAINWORKS intervention activities. The program includes a combination of medical provider services, stay-at-work (SAW)/return-to-work (RTW) coordination services, and other SAW/RTW services. Participants receive intensive case management and care coordination by health and employment services RTW navigators. Financial incentives are offered to participants and medical providers for milestone attainment and training achievement.

RETAIN Programming

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 65 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Has a work disability. Work disability is defined as an injury, illness, or medical condition that has the potential to inhibit or prevent continued employment or labor force participation. Work disability exists when an employee is not able to perform their usual work as a result of a health problem
• The work disability (i.e., illness, injury, or medical condition) must impact the participant's employment in one or more of the following ways:
• Participant's ability to attend work;
• Participant's ability to perform work duties;
• Participant's work performance/productivity
• The condition must be a new condition or an exacerbation of a chronic condition that falls into one or more of the following categories:
• Musculoskeletal injuries;
• Mental health disorders;
• Chronic diseases such as Diabetes, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), or Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) - this list is not all-inclusive;
• Other newly diagnosed illnesses or injuries that affect the individual's employment
• The condition may be acquired from or attributed to either on-the-job (occupational-related) or off-the-job (non-occupational-related) factors
• The participant must meet all the following criteria:
• Be between the ages of 18 and 65 years;
• Be currently employed or seeking employment;
• Either live or work in Kansas;

You may not qualify if:

• May NOT have application for SSDI or SSI benefits pending or already receiving such benefits at the onset of the injury or illness

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.: lead
• The United States Social Security Administration: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Kansas Department of Commerce

Topeka, Kansas, 66612, United States

RECRUITING

Study Officials

• Jill Berk, PhD

  Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Amaka Osuoha, MPH

CONTACT

734-205-3085; aosuoha@mathematica-mpr.com

Catherine Turvey, MPH

CONTACT

734-205-3145; cturvey@mathematica-mpr.com

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: November 5, 2021
• First Posted: December 22, 2021
• Study Start: October 22, 2021
• Primary Completion: June 1, 2025
• Study Completion: February 28, 2026
• Last Updated: January 24, 2022

Record last verified: 2021-11

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)