IPS for Young Adults

The IPS Employment Center developed a practitioner’s guide titled The IPS Supported Employment Approach to Help Young People with Work and School to expand on services for young people in 2017. An adapted version of the IPS fidelity scale was released in 2019 due to findings that young adults needed more support with career exploration and education advancement. This 35-item scale adds engagement factors unique to the young adult population, such as utilizing texting to communicate with young adults and promoting employment and education via social media. Although it is similar to the original fidelity scale for IPS Supported Employment, this scale adds guidelines around providing IPS Supported Education services. This scale also promotes incorporating family and natural supports or supports identified by the young person throughout the process. Lastly, this scale considers that young people often are undecided on career goals, so fluidity is promoted throughout different work experiences and exploration of career paths is strongly encouraged.

Young Adult Programs Featuring Supported Employment

The First Episode Psychosis Initiative is designed to provide early intervention services for youth and young adults fifteen through thirty (15-30) years of age in selected Tennessee counties who have experienced first-episode psychosis. This comprehensive intervention model (OnTrackTN) is a team of mental health professionals and support services, focusing on helping people work toward recovery and meeting personal goals. The program includes the following components:  individual and group psychotherapy, supported employment and education, family education and support, peer support, psychopharmacology, and care coordination.

The Tennessee Healthy Transitions Initiative assists youth and young adults (Y/YA) with mental illness and co-occurring disorders in improving their health and wellness, leading self-directed lives, and reaching their full potential. Services in HT2 are available to youth and young adults 16-25 who reside in selected Tennessee counties who have an SED, SMI, or co-occurring intellectual and developmental disability. The Healthy Transitions service model includes the following components: care coordination, peer support, and supported employment and education services.

The Clinical High Risk for Psychosis (CHR-P) Initiative assists youth and young adults ages 12 to 25 who are at clinical risk for developing psychosis with the overall goal of preventing the onset of psychosis or lessening the severity of psychotic disorders. The CHR-P service model includes the following components: care coordination, family and young adult peer support, and supported employment and education services.