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Supporting social, emotional and mental health and well-being: Roles of speech-language pathologists
118
JCPSLP
Volume 19, Number 3 2017
Journal of Clinical Practice in Speech-Language Pathology
Barbara Solarsh
(top) and Hilary
Johnson
THIS ARTICLE
HAS BEEN
PEER-
REVIEWED
KEYWORDS
COMMUNICA-
TION ACCESS
PARTICIPATION
SOCIAL
INCLUSION
community change such as increased physical access to
buildings and public transportation.
While having a physically accessible community
assists with community participation, there are additional,
and specific strategies required to create social or
communication access in order for social inclusion to
occur. These include a skilled listener who can conduct a
respectful interaction, communication resources to enhance
face-to-face interactions and information presented in
accessible formats. Practical strategies to reduce social
barriers implemented to date may be due partly to the
ratification and growing acceptance of the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
(UNCRPD; United Nations, 2006). The UNCRPD provided
the first international recognition of the rights of people with
communication disabilities and now underpins national and
global policy aimed at improving the lives of people living
with a communication disability (UNCRPD, 2006). Article 21
states that:
[p]arties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure
that persons with disabilities can exercise the right
to freedom of expression and opinion, including the
freedom to seek, receive and impart information and
ideas on an equal basis with others and through all
forms of communication of their choice.
In particular, Article 21(b) refers to “[a]ccepting and
facilitating the use of sign languages, Braille, augmentative
and alternative communication, and all other accessible
means, modes and formats of communication of their
choice by persons with disabilities in official interactions”
(UNCRPD, 2006).
Using the UNCRPD as a framework, several groups
internationally have engaged in promoting and furthering
communication rights of all individuals (Collier, Blackstone
& Taylor, 2012; Scottish Government, 2011; Solarsh &
Johnson, 2017). An example of this type of work was a
three-year awareness campaign to promote communication
accessible environments conducted in Canada
(Communication Disabilities Access Canada, 2015).
In preference to utilising a medical model that focuses
on an individual’s deficit or impairment, these groups
approached the issue of communication accessibility
through requiring environmental adaptations consistent with
the social model of disability (World Health Organization,
2011). The key tenet that differentiates the social model
from the medical model is the recognition of the role of
the environment as a facilitating or handicapping agent.
Social model approaches aim to reduce barriers and make
Speech pathologists around the world are
starting to address the issue of social
inclusion for people with communication
disability, and a new lexicon related to
communication inclusivity is emerging. Some
terms are relatively new, such as
communication access or inclusive
communication, while others, such as
communication disability, have been
redefined in terms of the shift from the
medical to the social model. The lexicon
under review relates to the range of
individuals who benefit from communication
inclusivity as well as to environments that
enable social inclusion for people with
communication disability. The authors seek
to open a discussion on the communication
access terminology in current use, and
examine the terms in relation to three
dimensions: the model reflected; the people
who are included; and the extent to which the
term is understood in the broader community.
The authors propose the identification of one
set of terms to be used internationally.
M
any western governments have policies and
practices to enhance social inclusion for
people with a disability (Family and Community
Development Committee, 2014; Ontario, 2008). Social
inclusion is a complex construct and has been defined
as “the interaction between two major life domains:
interpersonal relationships and community participation”
(Simplican, Leader, Kosciulek & Leahy, 2015 p. 18).
Johnson, Douglas, Bigby, and Iacono (2009) stated
that integral to social inclusion is the “consideration of
processes that develop and maintain relationships with
others” (p. 180). Until recently, the focus on processes to
increase social inclusion has been limited, with the main
strategy being the reduction of physical access barriers.
This reduction has been promoted through the adoption
of the International Symbol of Access now underpinned
by legislation through the Disability Discrimination Act
(Australian Government, 1992). The symbol and standards
have been powerful tools that have encouraged positive
Talking about
communication access
and social inclusion
Barbara Solarsh and Hilary Johnson