Name
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)About
Location
MarylandOrganization/Facility
Health CareWebsite
ASHACommunication Access: Better Health Starts with Effective Communication
Initiative Categories
Focus Areas
- Disability
- Health Equity
- Social Determinants of Health
Summary
People living with speech, language, voice, hearing, and cognitive challenges often face difficulties accessing the information and accommodations necessary for their health care. The lack of effective communication access not only leads to frustration for everyone involved in a care interaction but also contributes to poorer health and health care outcomes.
Prioritizing communication by asking individuals about their needs FIRST—and making necessary modifications—can improve access to quality care and help reduce health disparities. Yet, many health care workers feel uncomfortable or unprepared to do so. Audiologists and speech-language pathologists can assist by engaging in interprofessional education, training, and collaborative practice aimed at reducing communication barriers. They can also empower patients and clients with self-advocacy tools that support their rights to accessible, effective communication and high quality care.
ASHA's Communication Access initiative centers around its ACCESS framework, which outlines six key principles to improve effective communication access in health services and programs. The initiative includes online resources, trainings, and techincal assistance for health professionals, front-line staff, health system administrators, and consumers. It offers information about:
- the benefits of effective communication access in health settings;
- the roles of interprofessional teams in addressing communication barriers at individual and systems levels;
- tools and resources to (a) improve accessibility and (b) learn more about effective communication and communication-related disabilities.
Other activities supporting this initiative include presenting and exhibiting at related professional conferences, participating in media interviews and podcasts, highlighting the work of ASHA members in this area, sharing articles and e-newsletters with a wide range of health professionals, creating informational videos, and collaborating with other associations pursuing similar goals.
For More Information
See the Communication Access site or contact Adena Dacy (she/her) at healthservices@asha.org.
This initiative was submitted on December 23, 2025.