by
A. V. Shoshmin, N. V. Martinova
St. Petersburg scientific and practical center of
medical and social expertise, prosthetics and rehabilitation of disabled
n. a. G. A. Albreht
Post: 195067, Russia, St.-Petersburg, Bestuzevskaya,
50, fl.10,
of.11
tel.
/fax: (7-812) 543-9925
I.V. Shoshmina
Institute of High-Performance Computing and DataBases
Post: 4-th Sovetskaya, 10,5, 193036, St.-Petersburg, Russia
tel.:
(7-812) 2715593
Social
protection, Disabled, Classification of needs, Rehabilitation system in Russia
The social transformations in Russia have required the introduction of new technologies. Information technologies (IT) result in tremendous social and economic achievements. We have developed and approved a new technology of work with the handicapped that makes it possible to react promptly to the changes in the legislation, organise the process of their rehabilitation on the spot and manage the rehabilitation process generally at the country level.
In this report we present a new technology of work with the disabled
people in Russia: federal
automated information and analytical system of accounting and rehabilitation
(hereafter System). The
System intends to provide a serious change in the quality of work with the
handicapped at all levels.
The System is built on the basis uniting together the federal, regional
and company levels.
The purpose of the System is to provide maximum possible help to the
disabled within the framework of available means and facilities.
The tasks of the System are: assurance of standard objective (as much as
possible) examination of people suffering with medical problems, for
determination of extent of their disability; providing information to disabled,
specialists, managers of all administrative levels, about rehabilitation
services practised and organisations offering these services; providing access
to juridical documents on disability; analysis of handicapped needs and of
accessibility of rehabilitation resources, of efficiency of particular
regulatory documents, etc.
The social protection of the disabled people in Russia is organised
mainly by relevant local authorities. The acceptance of the need to provide
social aid to a particular person is effected by the state service responsible
for medical and social examination (MSE). The same service is meant to develop
individual programmes of rehabilitation of the handicapped and to control the
implementation of these programmes. However, in practice MSE just registers the
disabled. MSE service is reporting to the Ministry of Labour and Social
Development of the Russian Federation. The Service is built on a regional basis.
Every region has its main MSE division, with all other sub-divisions being
subordinate to it.
We have developed, as already mentioned, the concept of the System. To
make it a reality we need to automate MSE and some of the other regional bodies
of social protection of the population.
The System is a complex of solutions of organisation- and
information-related character in the sphere of social protection of the
population. Functionally we could single out the following blocks: registration
of the disabled, development of programmes of aid to the disabled, description
of types of aid and organisations providing the help.
In practice we have developed and approved such innovations as central
depository on disability-related data, regional data depositories, particular
workstations for MSE service, data analysis system. The System makes it possible
to integrate the data on disability issues collected from pension funds,
placement services, social insurance funds, etc.
We have developed a schedule for stage-by-stage introduction of the
System.
The key position in the System is taken by the development of individual
rehabilitation programme (IPR) which is supposed to be a basis for
rehabilitation of a person within the system of social protection of the
disabled in Russia. IPR aims at meeting the needs of a handicapped person.
However, our specialists, when developing IPR, have encountered a difficulty of
inclusion of specific measures in it, as so far there is not any precise
description of rehabilitation services (what is being done, for whom, under what
conditions, etc.) and of organisations providing such services.
The System envisages the registration of organisations providing
rehabilitation services. Special reference editions on technical means of
rehabilitation, on educational establishments accepting handicapped, etc. are
being developed, that are intended not only for the disabled, but also for the
IPR developing specialists and company managers. When registering the disabled
in the System, we use the classifiers accepted by the international
organisations, for example, ICD-10, ICIDH-2.
To ensure the valid functioning of the System, a whole number of
theoretical innovations was required. In particular, to be used in the System on
a practical basis, we have developed a true-to-life classification of the
handicapped vital needs as well as classification of rehabilitation services.
From the point of view of technologies involved the System being built
has unique functional resources. In the course of its development we used cached
database management system and qWord developer instrumental environment that
ensure ability to develop, scalability, flexibility to changes in setting the
tasks, portability, compatibility, immunity. We are positive that the full-scale
introduction of this System will ensure a principally new level of aid provided
to the disabled in Russia.
The information systems so far known to us that are used for social
protection of disabled, are mainly aimed at uniting organisations involved with
each other and interested in collaboration in one network, or at automation of
the people's workstations. These aspects, naturally, are necessary elements of a
well-developed informational infrastructure. We, however, try to find out the
handicapped needs and provide him (and the specialists involved) with the
information on how this need could be realised. For that we try to describe with
maximum precision the rehabilitation resources of different regions,
organisations and the relevant services provided there. The projects that are
most similar to ours in terms of social protection, taking the well-developed
countries, are developed by "Stakes" (Finland). "Stakes"
regards the problems of the handicapped at the governmental level including
their needs in the unified state system.