Health promotion in families who have children with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Abstract

Intellectual disability is the state of stopped or incomplete mental development which is featured by the impairment of abilities occurring at the development age and contributes to general level of intelligence, such as speech, cognitive, motor and social abilities. Disability can occur together or separately from other mental or physical disorders. 290 million people worldwide are estimated to have disabilities. Health is a core element in quality of life, but poverty, marginalization, limited access to primary health care, and lack of health promotion knowledge compromise health. Based on a research results in all nine areas of the family life quality (health, nancial status, family relations, support of other, support of services, influence of values, career, leisure and recreation, and community interaction) community could influence with the permanent preventive measures on 6 concepts of family life quality: importance, possibility, initiative, achievement, stability and satisfaction. The research could be of great help for the development of comprehensive strategies for improvement of quality of life for families that have one or more members with intellectual disability. From inclusion we expect approach to individual and his/her family by the society, to take into account all their diversities, preservation and improvement of their personal physical and mental health, for optimal possible functioning, at all personal and social levels.