The I-CAN: Using e-Health to get People the Support they Need

Sam is an Analytical Psychologist with a background in supporting adults with an intellectual disability in community settings. Sam is a doctoral candidate with the University of Sydney and works as a research fellow with the Centre for Disability Studies. Sam spends most of his time on the I-CAN, the Instrument for the Classification and Assessment of Support Needs. Sam does clinical work, and runs workshops on sexuality and actively supporting people to live in the community. Sam is also a closet nerd, and has an extensive background and personal connections in corporate web development. He has worked for companies such as IBM and AtMail.com, and co-developed systems used by clientele such as Ford, NEC, Redhat and Telstra. Sam provides specialist psychological services to the NSW Developmental Disability Health Unit, an adjunct service of CDS.

Vivienne Catherine Riches
http://cdds.med.usyd.edu.au
Centre for Disability Studies, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sydney, NSW
Australia

Dr Vivienne Riches is a registered psychologist and a Senior Research Fellow at the CDS and The University of Sydney. She holds conjoint appointments as Clinical Senor Lecturer, University of Sydney and Clinical Psychologist, Royal Rehabilitation Centre, Sydney. Vivienne has worked as a teacher, a clinical psychologist in rehabilitation, psychologist in private practice, consultant, lecturer and researcher in the disability field for a number of years. Research and development projects have focused on vocational preparation and employment for people with a disability, assessment and classification, support needs assessment, social and interpersonal competence, transition from school to post school for students with disabilities, staff training and Active Support, behavioural support and mental emotional health issues. Vivienne has published more than 100 articles, as well as books, book chapters, research and evaluation reports, and curriculum materials in the disability area, addressing social and interpersonal skills, emotional adjustment, vocational training, employment and transition for people with intellectual disabilities.

Trevor Reginald Parmenter
http://cdds.med.usyd.edu.au
Centre for Disability Studies, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sydney, NSW
Australia

Trevor R. Parmenter AM BA PhD FACE FAAIDD FIASSID FASSID holds the Foundation Chair of Developmental Disability in The Faculty of Medicine, and Honorary Professor in The Faculties of Education & Social Work and Health Sciences, at The University of Sydney. He is the Director of The Centre for Disability Studies at The Royal Rehabilitation Centre Sydney. Former positions include Professorial Fellow and Director of the Unit for Community Integration Studies at Macquarie University, prior to which he held teaching and administrative positions in the New South Wales Department of Education and Training. He has held a number of executive positions in international organizations including a Past President of the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disabilities and Past Vice President of the International Sports Federation for People with an Intellectual Disability. He is a visiting Research Fellow at the Beach Center for Family Studies at the University of Kansas and has been a Visiting Lecturer at Lancaster University. Research interests include disability policy, cognitive processes, inclusion, accommodation models, behavioural support, physical and mental health, quality of life and ageing.

Roger James Stancliffe
http://www.fhs.usyd.edu.au
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Sydney, Lidcombe, NSW
Australia

Roger Stancliffe is Associate Professor of Disability Studies at The University of Sydney, Faculty of Health Sciences. He is a researcher in the developmental disability field with a special interest in community living. Previously, he was a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Developmental Disability Studies (1997-2007) in Sydney, and a Research Associate at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, USA. His research interests include choice, self-determination, community living, Active Support, individual planning, deinstitutionalisation, and cost effectiveness of services. His most recent book is Costs and Outcomes of Community Services for People with Intellectual Disabilities (2005). He is a Consulting Editor to six international research journals on intellectual disability. In 2002 he was appointed as a Fellow of the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) and in 2008 he was elected as a Fellow of the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disability (IASSID).

The I-CAN: Using e-Health to get People the Support they Need

Sam Ronald Charles Arnold, Vivienne Catherine Riches, Trevor Reginald Parmenter, Roger James Stancliffe

Abstract

Background: The I-CAN is a comprehensive, reliable and valid system of identifying and classifying support needs of people with disabilities based on the conceptual framework of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) and the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disability (AAIDD) supports concept. Originally developed for people with Developmental Disability, the I-CAN’s application of internet technologies is currently being trialled in Mental Health, Rehabilitation Medicine and other disciplines. Conceptual underpinnings, research and implementation to date are summarized. Method: ICF based domains covering Health & Well Being and Activities & Participation have been refined over several versions. A total of 1012 individuals with disabilities across the eastern states of Australia were assessed using the first three versions, and 193 with the fourth versions. Studies investigated reliability, concurrent and predictive validity and user satisfaction. A fourth internet-based version has been implemented and is under continuing investigation and refinement. Results: The I-CAN instrument demonstrated good reliability and validity in studies to date. Domain scales effectively discriminated a range of intensities of support for people with various disabilities, with highest support needs generally recorded by individuals with multiple disabilities and ageing issues. Correlations between I-CAN and adaptive behaviour scales were mixed. The I-CAN scales measure individual support needs. However, regression analysis suggests that staffing and other organizational factors play a significant role in resource allocation apart from individual support need. There was general satisfaction with the assessment process from stakeholders and participants groups. Several brief case examples shall be presented. Conclusions: The I-CAN provides a reliable and valid tool for assessing and reporting on the support needs of people with disabilities using a process that involves the person, their family, friends and staff as appropriate. Several possibilities exist for this unique tool and the application of the ICF framework to e-health.

Keywords

ICF; Disability Evaluation; Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures; People with Disability; Electronic Health Records; Classification

Full Text: PDF

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

--- eJHI - electronic Journal of Health Informatics - ISSN 1446-4381 ---

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