Abstract: The lack of vocational rehabilitation in Iceland inspired the Janus
Rehabilitation initiative in the year 2000. The team currently consists of two
occupational therapists, a social worker, a physiotherapist, a psychologist,
and a physician. Janus uses resources from local education establishments and
is located at the Reykjavík Technical School. A client-centred approach
is used, enabling a flexible rehabilitation timeframe. The aim is to help the
client back to employment/education. Advantage is taken of the facilities of
the school where integration between education and rehabilitation takes
place. Forty individuals have been admitted, with a mean time from work of
2.9 years, (range: 0–11 years). Seventeen (43%) have returned to
employment/education. Twenty-three of those entering the programme are still on
invalidity pension. The Canadian Occupational Performance Measurement (COPM)
shows improvement in occupational performance and satisfaction. The Icelandic
Quality of Life measurement also shows improvement. The results have been
promising. However, a larger group is needed in order to draw clear unequivocal
conclusions.
Keywords: vocational therapy, vocational training, work rehabilitation, work, education, multidiscipline team work
