The ICF is the World Health Organization framework and classification system for organising and documenting information on functioning and disability: the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF).
The ICF ‘biopsychosocial’ model combines the medical and social models of disability. It understands a person’s experience of functioning and disability as reflecting the interaction between their health condition/s, environmental factors and personal factors. In ICF, ‘functioning’ is an umbrella term encompassing all body functions, activities and participation.
The ICF provides classifications for body functions, body structures, activities and participation, and environmental factors. The ICF is designed to describe functioning and disability, not to classify people. The ICF online browser and other information can be accessed here.
Download ICF at a Glance (245KB).
The ICF Australia Interest Group (ICF-AIG) is a group of people with diverse interests and expertise relating to the ICF and its uses.
It is a forum for discussion and information-sharing, and facilitates ICF-related input into research, policy and practice activities. For example, the group has produced papers and submissions outlining the role and value of the ICF in the context of the National Disability Insurance Scheme and the Review of the Disability Discrimination Act.
ICF-AIG meetings are held online two or three times a year. They include topical presentations and discussions as well as opportunities for members to exchange information.
The ICF-AIG welcomes new members. If you are interested in joining ICF-AIG, please email shs.icf@sydney.edu.au.
2026 is the twenty-fifth anniversary of publication of the ICF.
To mark the anniversary, a celebration will be held in conjunction with the WHO Family of International Classifications Network annual meeting in Sydney on the afternoon of 12th October 2026.
The Symposium will run from 15:00 – 17:30. Following the Symposium there will be a welcome reception and celebration of 25 years of the ICF.
There will be a wide range of Australian and international presenters.
Attendance fees:
The WHO Family of International Classifications:
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare:
Mailing address:
Centre for Disability Research and Policy, Susan Wakil Health Building, the University of Sydney NSW 2006
