Description and Evaluation of Services and DirectoriEs:An international classification of human services. An international classification of human services

Abstract

DESDE is an ontology‑driven, multiaxial instrument for the standardized description of human services, used to classify and compare health, social and other sector services (justice, education, employment, housing) through the service teams that operate at local level. It evolved from the ESMS and earlier DESDE tools for disability and long‑term care, developed in a series of European projects starting in1994. The manual emphasizes the need for a common terminology, clearly distinguishing “services” from policies, programmes and single interventions, and arguing that evidence must be interpreted within the specific geographical and population context where services are implemented. DESDE focuses on micro‑organisations grouped into Service Clusters, whose minimal unit of analysis is the Service Team, defined by temporal continuity and organisational stability. The main function of each team is coded as a Main Service Function (MSF) using a hierarchical alphanumeric taxonomy with six branches: Residential (R), Day care (D), Accessibility (A), Guidance—information and evaluation (G), Self‑help and volunteer (S), and Other (visit‑based) care (O). The coding thread also incorporates sector cluster (e.g. health, social, education), geographical area and target population, which is described using international classifications such as ICD and ICF, together with age and specific‑group codes. DESDE enables the creation of multisectoral service directories, assessment of availability, diversity, placement and workforce capacity, and the comparison of provision and use of services between areas and over time, supported by detailed inventory guidelines and an extensive glossary that harmonises key concepts in service research and system planning.