IAACD's Mission
The mission of the IAACD is to improve the health and well-being of children, youth and adults with childhood-onset disabilities around the globe by enhancing local multidisciplinary professional capacity and expertise through an international collaboration between academies.
Achieving the Mission
The Alliance will work to achieve this mission through the following initiative:
- Promote evidence-based teaching and training of multidisciplinary professionals in all aspects of childhood-onset disability, with a lifespan perspective, across different regions and cultures.
- Foster collaboration to support all involved in the care of children and youth with disabilities including parents, caretakers, communities and professionals.
- Promote collaborative scientific and needs-driven research in childhood disability that is applicable across diverse needs and conditions.
- Promote the implementation of childhood-onset disability practice change that is informed by regional and cultural variation.
- Partner with key stakeholders and organizations to support of the full implementation of the rights of individuals with childhood-onset disabilities.
- Establish and apply a set of fundamental ethical and scientific standards for the Alliance and member academies.
In pursuit of these aims, the IAACD will:
- Encourage and support the establishment of new regional multi-disciplinary academies of childhood disability, and grow by the inclusion of new and existent academies;
- Hold IAACD Conferences every 3-4 years, arranged by one or more of the Member Academies, and encourage regional meetings and conferences to promote education, research and dissemination of scientific and evidence-based knowledge culturally appropriate to each region’s needs;
- Provide support to Member Academies to arrange workshops, courses and other forms of meetings; and provide financial support for multidisciplinary professionals from low and middle income countries (LMIC) to attend and participate in IAACD and regional conferences;
- Establish a Teaching Faculty with international experts and regional members with expertise in cultural and language adaptation, in order to develop a core curriculum that is evidence-based and that can be adapted to local needs; and develop a strategy and process for education and training that is locally organized, led, and delivered by volunteer faculty members;
- Promote inter-disciplinary professional practice that values the breadth of expertise required to support individual and family development and well-being; promote advances of individual and family-centred care and the role of communities in providing an environment that supports the development and well-being of individuals with child-onset disabilities;
- Develop a Research Faculty with international and regional researchers to explore and develop strategies and processes to foster local research capacity and expertise across the globe, including opportunities for advice and funding of locally developed research projects, and enables professionals to access research and clinical training in well-acknowledged academic institutions;
- Promote development of evidence-based best practice recommendations for assessment and intervention in childhood disability, and support adaptation of these approaches in various regions depending on economic resources, health system, and cultural/environmental variations;
- Initiate partnerships with other organizations (governmental and non-governmental), to advance health services and rehabilitation within the WHO ICF framework; and advise such organizations regarding possible educational standards for training of multidisciplinary professionals that can be adapted to the specific needs of different regions; and
- Identify a set of values and standards that will form the base for the governance of the Alliance and its Member Academies, including human rights perspective, multi- professional participation, evidence-based principles and economic transparency.
