The international classification of functioning, disability and health—a common framework for describing health states

The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) 1 aims to provide a unified and standard language and framework for the description of health and health-related states. ICF covers all possible components of health, and some health-related components of well-being (such as education, labour, etc) for description and assessment. The ICF domains can, therefore, be seen as health domains and health-related domains. These domains are described by two basic lists: (1) body functions and structure; (2) activities and participation. 2 As a classification, ICF systematically groups different domains 3 for a person in a given health condition (e.g. what a person with a disease or disorder does do or can do) and renders a useful profile of the individual's functioning in various health and health-related domains. ICF belongs to the " family " of classifications developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) for application to various aspects of health. In WHO's family of international classifications, health conditions are classified mainly in ICD-10 (International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision), 4 which basically provides an etiological framework. The health states associated with diseases , disorders or other health conditions are classified in ICF. The ICD-10 and ICF are therefore complementary. ICD-10 provides a " diagnosis " and this information is enriched by the additional information given by ICF. Together, information on diagnosis plus functioning provides a broader and more meaningful picture that describes the health of persons or populations. ICF has moved away from a " consequence of disease " classification (in its 1980 version, the International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps [ICIDH]) to a " components of health " classification. " Components of health " defines what constitutes health, whereas " consequences " focus on the impacts of diseases or other health conditions that follow as a result. In this way, ICF takes a neutral stand with regard to 344 Summary Measures of Population Health etiology and allows researchers to arrive at causal inferences with scientific methods. ICF is a multipurpose classification designed to serve various disciplines and different sectors. Its specific aim is to provide a scientific basis for understanding and studying health states and health-related outcomes, and their determinants; and to establish a common language for describing health states that will permit comparison of data across countries, health care disciplines, services and time. Since its first publication in 1980, ICIDH has been …