FARMINGTON, Mo. — For nearly 20 years, Kenney Willis was afraid to get a job. He had worked a couple days at a convenience store but was fired after he couldn’t find the potato wedges and spilled the pizza sauce.
“I worked once, and I failed, and I didn’t think I could do it again,” said Willis, 40, who has bipolar disorder and lives in a group home in Farmington. Bipolar disorder causes unusual shifts in mood, energy and concentration.
Just recently, Willis celebrated two years working at a Taco Bell near his home — helping guests order at kiosks, cleaning the lobby and making the Cinnamon Twists. He is not only a star employee, but a happier and healthier person.
“It makes me feel really good,” he said. “I’ve had a lot of ups and down there, but I’m really proud of myself.”
Willis says he owes his success to a supported employment program that is part of his mental health care with BJC Behavioral Health, which provides services in four locations across the Ƶ area and one in Farmington in St. Francois County.
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Over 10 years ago, was one of the first providers in Missouri to adopt an employment program model called , which is designed for those with serious mental illness.
The IPS model is unique in that it involves employment specialists helping individuals rapidly get competitive and integrated jobs, while working with employers and supporting individuals as challenges arise. No one is considered incapable of finding work. The specialist is part of the health care team.
The idea is that work is an essential part of treatment.
In 2009, mental health providers began using the model in a handful of locations in Missouri. Soon, , according to the Missouri Department of Mental Health, including , , and in the Ƶ area.
Across the country, IPS has grown from being offered at 40 sites in 2004, to more than 350 in 26 different states, according to researchers who developed and continue to study the model.
that individuals participating in IPS were nearly 2.5 times more likely to be employed than those in other employment programs. They also earn more and are happier with their jobs.
“I think it’s really grown just because we see the success of it,” said the Missouri Department of Mental Health’s Rosie Anderson-Harper, director of recovery services. “We know how important it is for our mental health to have a job … it helps with their symptoms, it helps give them structure to their day, it helps them form relationships with people.”
In programs across the state without the IPS model, about 18% of clients are successfully employed (longer than 90 days), Anderson-Harper said, as opposed to more than 50% where it’s implemented.
Nearly 2,200 Missourians participate in IPS programs, according to the latest data, which is on the rebound after the COVID-19 pandemic. Providers say they hope to reach even more.
About 258,000 adults in Missouri have a serious mental illness, meaning they have a diagnosable disorder such as schizophrenia or major depression that substantially interferes with daily life, according to .
State-level data is unknown, but nationwide surveys have found that about two-thirds of people with serious mental illness want to work, but only 10% to 15% are employed.
“If I didn’t work,” Willis said, “I wouldn’t have self-esteem. Because I don’t have a lot of friends, and I don’t have a lot of the support, so I need that self-esteem to feel good about myself.”
New model
After years of dismal results with traditional vocational rehabilitation programs, the model was developed in 1990s by researchers with Dartmouth University. It continues to be studied by a team of researchers and educators that created the to share outcomes and provide training for providers.
Jenise Woolf, supervisor of community services for BJC Behavioral Health, recalls the dramatic change from a traditional supported employment program to the new model.
Requirements like job-readiness training, lengthy interview practicing, in-depth learning style assessments and 90 days of sobriety went by the wayside, Woolf said. Same with the idea that some clients should not even be recommended for employment.
“It’s hit the ground running,” she said. “The only requirement is that they are interested in going to work.”
Clients used to be advised not to tell employers about their illness because of stigma, Woolf said. Now, they are encouraged to disclose their diagnosis in order to normalize it and receive support.
Employment specialists will work closely with employers to understand their needs and help address challenges as they unfold. “We let them know we are invested in their success,” Woolf said.
The specialists and the health care team work together to ensure symptoms are kept at bay and other issues, such as substance use disorders, are treated.
In addition, the specialists work closely with Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation counselors within the state education department, which receives federal and state funding to help with the cost of work-related needs such as transportation, job uniforms or developing resumes.
The Vocational Rehabilitation program also pays treatment providers based on employment milestones that specialists reach with their clients.
The Missouri Department of Mental Health, on the other hand, works closely with the model’s researchers to provide outcomes and training for providers and ensuring the model is being followed.
Anderson-Harper with MDH said the collaboration is unique and part of the reason why more than half of IPS clients across Missouri are successfully employed. “We are leaders because of the close partnership with vocational rehabilitation and how we do this together,” she said.
This year, the state health department recognized BJC’s program in Farmington as the IPS Program of the Year because of its consistently high employment rates, adherence to the model and long-time staff.
Woolf with BJC said the Farmington team refuses to give up on their clients.
“They don’t look at the barriers a client might be up against,” she said. “It’s about problem-solving — this is what the issue is, and this how we can tackle it to help the person succeed.”
Overcoming doubt
Willis was volunteering at when he met his employment specialist, Robert Greif, about five years ago. A clubhouse is a community center with social programs for those with mental illness. It is run by volunteers with mental illness in conjunction with professional staff.
Greif said he noticed Willis was very social and signed up for all the clubhouse activities. Willis gave tours, answered phones and helped run the Snack Shack. Everyone knew him and liked him.
Greif tried to encourage him to see that these skills were transferable, that he had a lot of experience that would make him a great employee. Willis and his grandmother, his legal guardian, were also worried about losing his much-needed disability benefits, which Greif promised to make sure the work schedule would not impact.
“It takes time with this program to build up a level of rapport and to build up a level of trust,” Greif said. “So, we worked on that for a while. He had a lot of self-doubt, a lot of doubt in his abilities, and a lot of fears even going into the interview.”
The road was bumpy. Willis’ first few fast-food jobs caused too much anxiety. The bike he was given to take to work was stolen. But with support, he remained tenacious.
“Any time you try new things and gain experience, you grow, and Kenney did that. He grew and became more confident,” Greif said. “Even the job losses he had, he learned new skills and learned different duties and applied them to the next job.”
Willis said he learned how to not let a small problem spiral into something larger, take changes in staff in stride and not take customers’ complaints personally.
The change has been dramatic, Greif said. “Where before something may have really rattled his cage or really got him upset, where he might not want to continue, now he’s learned how to work and cope and deal with it.”
The Taco Bell where he works no longer has customer surveys, but Willis said he used to get high marks. “My GM put on there, ‘I love how our guests actually love you,’” he said. “And I’m really liked by my co-workers now too.”
While recently sitting next to Greif, Willis said he someday wants to live on his own.
“You don’t have to stop here, Kenney,” Greif told him. “Keep moving forward with your life goals. We all have them.”
Published in the Sunday, Oct. 29 edition.