The International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities, and Handicaps (ICIDH): its use in rehabilitation.

This article intends to show possibilities and examples of actual use of ICIDH in rehabilitation. Most of the examples concern the use of the classification at the individual level (patient profile, assessment of patient needs, evaluation of treatment, discharge status). Some can serve at meso level: aggregated data (statistics) for evaluation of treatment at institutional level, determination of numbers of staff required. A few other examples concern the use of the ICIDH at macro level in rehabilitation: national policy, education and training of professionals, community-based rehabilitation programmes. Special attention is given to examples of ICIDH use in rehabilitation of special groups such as children, the mentally retarded, cancer patients, elderly people, geriatric patients.