Illinois

Department of Human Services
Rehabilitation Services
100 S Grand Ave E
Springfield, IL 62762
Toll Free: (800)843-6154
TTY: (800)447-6404
dhs.org@illinois.gov

Employment Resources:

CALOR

Chicago House and Social Service Agency
Offers an employment program: "Chicago House's Employment Program is designed to help unemployed adults with HIV secure and retain productive employment so that they do not need to rely solely on subsidized medical care and housing. A four-week training workshop, career counseling, mentorship, and internship opportunities help clients achieve greater self-sufficiency and productivity, ultimately leading to successful employment."

Research:

Illinois Legal Aid
Provides information regarding HIV and employment in Illinois.

Neurocognitive function predicts employment status in HIV-seropositive women: the Women's Interagency HIV Study(WIHS)- Chicago Consortium
OBJECTIVES: There are few available data on the neurobehavioral status of HIV-seropositive women or its relationship to daily or occupational functioning. The object of this study was to evaluate the performance of HIV-seropositive women and seronegative controls on measures of neurocognitive function and determine the association between neuropsychological impairment and employment. DESIGN: Prospective controlled study. METHOD: We administered a battery of neuropsychological (NP) tests to 101 women enrolled at Chicago sites for the Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS), a multicenter study of HIV disease progression in women. Groups included 77 HIV-seropositive women without dementia (median CD4 = 446, 14% with CD4 < 200) and 24 high-risk seronegative women. Groups were matched on age, education, substance abuse history and current psychological distress. RESULTS: NP protocols of 31% of seropositive women but only 8% of seronegative women were classified as abnormal (p = .05). 25% of seronegative women and 26% of seropositive women with normal NP protocols but only 4% of seropositive women with abnormal protocols were employed currently (p = .01). CD4 counts, educational levels, and prevalence of antiretroviral therapy did not differ significantly between seropositive women with normal and abnormal NP protocols. Rates of substance abuse (64% for seronegative vs. 67% for seropositive women) and depression (54% vs. 53%) were very high and did not differ significantly between groups. CONCLUSION: Neurocognitive abnormalities are significantly more frequent among HIV-seropositive women compared with seronegative controls despite high and similar rates of psychological distress and substance abuse. Neuropsychological function appears to be a stronger predictor of current employment status than disease progression in this group of seropositive women and should be studied further in relation to psychosocial function and medication adherence.