Evaluation of the ADD'Pro Vocational Reintegration Program (ADD-PRO-EVAL)

Returning to work is a key component of recovery for people with substance use disorders (SUD). Employment not only reduces the risk of relapse and decreases substance use, but also contributes broadly to improved mental health, financial stability, and social integration. Yet despite a strong and often expressed desire to return to professional life, employment rates among patients receiving addiction care remain critically low. This paradox between motivation and actual vocational outcomes reflects the multiple barriers these patients face: stigma from employers, gaps in employment history, cognitive difficulties, comorbid psychiatric conditions, and a lack of coordinated support bridging the medical and professional domains.

Standard employment services are valuable yet are rarely designed to address the specific complexity of addiction-related needs. They operate independently from healthcare teams, with limited awareness of the medical and psychosocial factors that affect a patient's readiness and capacity to work. This disconnect frequently results in patients being referred too early, without adequate preparation, or simply falling through the gap between health and employment systems.

To address this unmet need, the ADD'Pro program was developed as a structured partnership between the Day Hospital for Addiction (Hôpital de Jour d'Addictologie, HDJA) at Clermont-Ferrand University Hospital and the CeCler Association, a non-profit organization specializing in both social and vocational insertion. The program offers a medico-psychosocial support pathway that integrates clinical addiction care with individualised vocational guidance. From the outset, patients receive support on both fronts simultaneously: multidisciplinary assessment and treatment within the HDJA, combined with personalized accompaniment by a vocational counsellor (conseiller en insertion professionnelle, CIP) from the CeCler Association.

The ADD'Pro pathway unfolds in four key phases: (1) raising awareness about employment through a structured group workshop held at the HDJA; (2) a comprehensive vocational assessment exploring the patient's professional history, aspirations, barriers, and readiness to work; (3) active, individualised dual support combining medical care and vocational guidance, including job search preparation, employer outreach, workplace immersions, and skills development; and (4) open-ended follow-up by the CeCler Association beyond the hospital care period, including post-placement support to promote job retention. Coordination between the two structures is ensured by a psychologist-doctoral researcher who facilitates regular joint meetings and continuity of care.

The ADD-PRO-EVAL study is a prospective, open-label, single-center randomized controlled trial designed to evaluate the effectiveness of this program compared to standard care. One hundred participants with SUD currently receiving care at the HDJA will be enrolled over a two-year recruitment period and randomly assigned (1:1 ratio) to one of two arms. Participants in the ADD'Pro-Initial arm will immediately receive the full ADD'Pro program alongside their standard hospital care. Participants in the Standard Care arm will be referred to conventional employment services (France Travail or Cap Emploi), with monthly follow-up interviews conducted at the HDJA to monitor their employment-seeking activities; they will have the option to access ADD'Pro after six months.

The primary outcome is the rate of competitive employment, defined as at least one day worked in the open labour market - at six months post-inclusion. Secondary outcomes are extensive and cover multiple dimensions of vocational and health-related recovery. These include: participation in employment preparation activities (individual and group sessions with counsellors, workplace immersions, job applications, internships, and vocational training); detailed employment outcomes such as time to first job, total time worked, and job retention; work-related psychological factors including return-to-work self-efficacy (RTW-SE-11), work ability (Work Ability Index), and work-related recovery expectations (WRREQ); broader health indicators including coping strategies (Brief-COPE), global functioning (GAF scale), quality of life (WHOQOL-Bref), and addiction severity (CGI-S/CGI-I). In addition, a sub-sample of up to 50 participants will undergo an adapted version of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) - a simulated job interview protocol - with collection of salivary biomarkers (cortisol, DHEA, leptin, ghrelin, alpha-amylase…) and continuous heart rate variability monitoring, to explore physiological stress reactivity as a marker of vocational readiness.

All participants will be assessed at inclusion (T0), 3 months, 6 months (primary endpoint), and 12 months. Randomization is computer-generated with variable block sizes, stratified by age. Statistical analyses will follow the intention-to-treat principle.

The ADD'Pro-EVAL trial aims to generate robust evidence on the value of integrated medico-psychosocial support for vocational reintegration in addiction care with potential implications for clinical practice, healthcare policy, and the design of future collaborative programs between health and employment services.