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CIRRIE Workshop Summary
International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health

Note: CIRRIE is no longer offering ICF workshops.

The ICF

The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) is a comprehensive classification system designed to capture aspects of human functioning in the context of a health condition. The ICF was endorsed for international use by the World Health Assembly in May 2001. The system consists of a hierarchy of classifications for each of its domains: Body Functions and Structures, Activities and Participation, and Environmental Factors (See figure below). Codes can be recorded for each classified item within a domain to indicate the extent of ‘problem’ with any of these aspects of functioning. Environmental Factors can be recorded as being either barriers to or facilitators of a person's functioning.

The classification system permits clinicians to fully discuss the complex issues encountered in clinical situations. The ICF recognizes human functioning as multi–faceted and involving more than a purely biological perspective on health. Impairment is related to functional status, but it is not strictly predictive of functional independence and performance on an everyday basis in one's natural environment. By capturing information about more than level of impairment alone, the ICF allows for a more comprehensive description of functioning.

The Workshop

This all–day workshop will provide an orientation and overview of the ICF system and a discussion of issues encountered in its clinical application. The basis for the workshop is the Procedural Manual and Guide for Standardized Application of the ICF: A Manual for Health Professionals (Manual). Several professional organizations representing U.S. health professionals have collaborated over the past several years on the development of this manual. The goals of the Manual include providing a standard approach to the classification that is clinically grounded, providing consistent interpretation of concepts and operational definitions of terms, and facilitating reliable, valid, and clinically useful classification using the ICF system. Through this collaboration, numerous issues related to reliable and consistent coding have been identified and solutions have been proposed. The structure and content of the Manual will be reviewed and an orientation to the Manual as a source of additional guidance for the coding of clinical cases will be provided.

Who Should Attend?

The intended audience of the workshop includes health professionals who diagnose mental and physical disorders, those who are accredited, licensed or certified to provide professional treatment or rehabilitation, as well as supervisors, teachers, and advanced students. Participants will have an opportunity to practice and discuss coding of clinical cases based on written vignettes and videotaped case presentations.

Instructors

Faculty for the workshop will be two health professionals actively involved in creation of the Manual and/or implementation of the ICF in applied settings. These individuals bring content expertise and experience in working with the World Health Organization and the ICF and extensive knowledge regarding application of the ICF in health care settings and with individuals with health conditions.

Objectives

  1. Understand the conceptual organization of the ICF and the basic mechanism for coding clinical encounters.
  2. Understand the conceptual issues that interfere with reliable use of the ICF by clinicians
  3. Understand the purpose and conceptual organization of the ICF Manual for Health Professionals (Manual)
  4. Practice applying ICF codes to clinical case examples using the ICF system and the Manual.

Workshop Hosting

If you are interested in having this workshop conducted for your organization, please contact CIRRIE at the address below. CIRRIE will sponsor at least one workshop per year. CIRRIE's sponsorship includes the costs related to the presenters, namely, the presenters' honoraria and travel expenses. It also includes materials used in the workshop, including a copy of the ICF itself, as well as the Procedural Manual. Hosting organizations are responsible for promotion and training site expenses.

John Stone, Ph.D., Director
Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information and Exchange (CIRRIE)
515 Kimball Tower
University at Buffalo, State University of New York
Buffalo, NY 14214, U.S.A.
Email: jstone@buffalo.edu
Phone: (716) 829-3141 ext. 125
Fax: (716) 829–3217
Web: http://cirrie.buffalo.edu

For more detailed information regarding the content and methodology of the workshop, you may wish to contact:

Lynn F. Bufka, Ph.D.
Director, Professional Development Demonstration Projects
PracticeNet
American Psychological Association
750 First Street, NE
Washington, D.C. 20002
lbufka@apa.org
(202) 336–5869
(202) 336–5797 (fax)