APF France handicap and the Ministry of Health launch the first practice accessibility directory

Many professionals are invited to refer themselves: general practitioners and specialists, dental surgeons, midwives, masseurs-physiotherapists…

Paris, Monday July 18, 2022

APF France handicap and the Ministry of Health and Prevention launch the first practice accessibility directory, and invite healthcare professionals to register without delay

Today, 2/3 of people with disabilities face difficulties in accessing care and 52% of people on crutches and in wheelchairs say they have difficulty getting to specialist surgeries. Faced with these findings, APF France handicap and the Ministry of Health and Prevention have devised an online directory whose objective is to identify and promote the accessibility of healthcare facilities for patients with disabilities, in a situation of obesity, or in loss of autonomy… This directory hosted on the Santé.fr site will allow them to find a professional who will be able to welcome them according to their needs and thus in the best conditions.

Health professionals are invited to provide information on their reception and care conditions to prepare for opening to the public at the end of 2022.

A tool co-constructed by patient representatives and healthcare professionals

APF France handicap and the Ministry of Solidarity and Health worked with the support of bodies representing healthcare professionals and patients to create a single directory, hosted on Santé.fr, with the aim of giving users simple, clear and precise information allowing easy access to health care.

For this, many professionals are invited to refer themselves: general practitioners and specialists, dental surgeons, midwives, masseurs-physiotherapists, podiatrists, podiatrists, nurses, speech therapists, orthoptists, audioprosthetists.
Each healthcare professional communicates their information directly on Santé.fr: www.sante.fr/annuaire-accessibilite-pro.

Ten minutes are enough to fill out the form: access to the place of exercise, to the care of the patient or to the equipment.
The purpose of this collection is to avoid a request for an appointment from a patient who could not ultimately be treated and to be able to direct him to the appropriate colleague.

Thanks to this collection of information and according to his type of handicap (motor, visual, auditory, intellectual, with autism spectrum disorder, psychic…) the user will be able, through a filter, to access information such as : the possibility for the professional to communicate in French sign language, the presence of an elevator, an access ramp, parking spaces near the meeting place, or even the identification of equipment allowing to accommodate obese patients, for example.
“It goes beyond identifying an accessible place. Indeed, Santé.fr will also make it possible to identify possible avenues for improvement to be put in place,” explains Pauline Leduc, Regional Project Manager for inclusion policies within APF France handicap Pays de la Loire.
The data collected on Santé.fr will be available to the general public from the 4th quarter of 2022, the aim being to allow time for health professionals to fill in the information concerning them and thus allow better access to care for people in situation. disability, in particular.

APF France handicap

It is an important French association, recognized for public utility, defense and representation of people with disabilities and their relatives. It brings together 85,000 actors and intervenes in all areas of daily life thanks to its national local network of more than 550 structures (delegations, social and medico-social services and establishments and adapted companies).