Augmenting vocational outcomes of supported employment with social skills training

Although social skills training and supported employment have been widely accepted as effective treatment modalities to improve social and vocational outcomes of persons with severe mental illness, they are regarded as two unrelated and sometimes even conflicting strategies. Limited effort has been made to combine these two techniques to produce a better vocational outcome. In this article, the author traced the development and evidence in support of supported employment, reviewed the role of social functioning in employment outcome, and argued that the vocational outcomes in terms of job retention using supported employment could be improved with the addition of social skills training program specially designed and developed for job tenure. A preliminary service protocol for this integrated service was described. The application of this protocol was illustrated via a case vignette.