Gruppi di lavoro

Proposal for a new EFMI WG
"Informatics for the Disabled and Rehabilitation"
(IDR)

Background

Medical informatics issues have - or could have - an important role when taking into consideration the disabled people realm and the rehabilitation activities. At the same time the population of people with needs for rehabilitation and support as to the daily living activities, maintenance of the health status and social participation is growing.

The scopes of MI as to disabilities and rehabilitation are various:

  • patient oriented
    • accessibility and usability of ICT and web based system
    • ICT based assistive technologies and domotics
    • reminder systems to compensate or reduce cognitive-behavioural limitations
    • virtual support communities
  • healthcare oriented
    • patient classification systems (ICF) and their relationships with other systems such as ICNP
    • epidemiology and governance
    • tools for rehabilitative and tele-rehabiltative therapies for physical and cognitive impairments
  • both patient and healthcare oriented
    • specially tailored learning systems
    • ICT based models for the continuity of integrated care

Some of the above mentioned items are common to the entire field of healthcare, but they acquire a special meaning in comprehensive long lasting programs aimed at reducing or overcoming deficits following injury or illness and re-gaining the optimal possible mental and physical ability.

Rationale of the proposal of a WG within the EFMI

Few are the papers dealing with the proposed topic published in medical informatics journals or presented during conferences. A wider literature is spread in public health, IEEE, and medical, nursing and social sciences scientific serials, but mostly in an occasional way.

In our opinion the medical informatics community could/should contribute to promote both the scientific interest for the applications of the informatics to the disabilities/rehabilitation field and the culture of the e-inclusion.

Objectives

  • To support research, developmental work and education/information in the field through:
    1. a systematic progressive collection of the relevant literature and the organization of a privileged channel for its diffusion;
    2. the promotion of a discussion forum;
    3. the identification of scopes, on the basis of a shared interest, for a collaboration among the EFMI members;
    4. the monitoring of calls for tender/proposal in line with the proposed themes.
  • To promote a multidisciplinary collaboration among the healthcare and informatics professionals on one hand, and the consumer associations on the other hand in order to pursue, and also spread the culture of, accessibility and usability.
  • To involve researchers belonging to different disciplines and users through the organization of workshops.

Relationships with other WGs

The "Informatics for the disabled and rehabilitation" (IDR) differs from the other EFMI WGs (with the sole exception of Primary Care Informatics) being focused on a specific, even if very wide, clinical context. On the other hand, some of the already present WGs could be crosswise involved in the IDR.

Moreover, a link could be established with the IMIA Health Consumer Informatics WG2, taking into account the patient oriented scopes, and with the Technology Assessment & Quality Development in Health Informatics WG15.

Contact

For information please contact M. Cristina Mazzoleni, IRCCS Fondazione Maugeri, Pavia Italy (phone +39 0382 592467, cmazzoleni@fsm.it).