Tailoring a vocational rehabilitation program to the needs of people with HIV/AIDS: The Harbor-UCLA experience

Abstract

New treatments introduced in the early to mid 1990s led to greatly improved health and quality of life for many people with HIV/AIDS, prompting some to consider workforce reentry. In this paper, we relate three projects we have undertaken since 1996 in which we have worked to develop an understanding of the workforce reentry process for people with HIV/AIDS. In the first, a survey of HIV/AIDS case management clients throughout Los Angeles County, we noted a substantial need for workforce reentry assistance services, and noted six broad categories of workforce-reentry concern for people with HIV/AIDS. Our second project was designed as a demonstration project to assist people with HIV/AIDS in their efforts to return to work. We found, among other things, that significant obstacles unrelated to employment also thwarted workforce reentry efforts. Finally, in our current clinical-trials study, we continue to learn from participants in their efforts to rejoin the workforce. We discuss our cumulative results to date, and highlight certain future directions for research and service.