Lopez Leslie, Warren Sarah, Anthony Teresa, Coco Laura
LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, Louisiana State University, New Orleans, LA, United States.
School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States.
Front Public Health. 2025 May 19;13:1576973. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1576973. eCollection 2025.
Communication is a fundamental human experience at both inter-and intrapersonal levels, deeply intertwined with societal development. Because of the integral role of communication in society, challenges in communication-whether due to differences, disorders, or environmental factors-can create significant barriers to full societal participation. Rather than viewing these challenges solely through the lens of "disability," recognizing as a distinct and essential aspect of public health is crucial for addressing these barriers and advancing health equity. This viewpoint introduces the concept of , advocating for an integrated approach that unites the fields of communication sciences and disorders and public health to address as a social determinant of health. It presents a conceptual framework that emphasizes collaboration across the education, employment, housing, and community sectors, highlighting the importance of perceiving communication challenges as modifiable barriers to full societal participation. It aims to offer insight and debate, and mobilize public health professionals to recognize and prioritize , offering a comprehensive approach that considers both individual and societal needs. By establishing as a new and distinct entity within public health infrastructure, we can better address the full spectrum of communication needs, from individuals with communication disorders and differences to those with healthy communication abilities. This perspective article format allows us to synthesize underexamined intersections between communication sciences and public health, and to advocate for an emerging framework in the absence of an established empirical evidence base.
沟通是人际和个人内层面上的一种基本人类体验，与社会发展紧密相连。由于沟通在社会中具有不可或缺的作用，沟通方面的挑战——无论是由于差异、障碍还是环境因素——都可能对充分参与社会造成重大障碍。与其仅从“残疾”的角度看待这些挑战，将其视为公共卫生的一个独特且重要的方面对于消除这些障碍和促进健康公平至关重要。这一观点引入了[具体概念缺失]的概念，倡导一种综合方法，将沟通科学与障碍领域和公共卫生领域结合起来，将[具体概念缺失]作为健康的一个社会决定因素来应对。它提出了一个概念框架，强调教育、就业、住房和社区部门之间的合作，突出将沟通挑战视为充分参与社会的可改变障碍的重要性。其目的是提供见解和引发讨论，并促使公共卫生专业人员认识到[具体概念缺失]并将其列为优先事项，提供一种兼顾个人和社会需求的全面方法。通过在公共卫生基础设施中确立[具体概念缺失]为一个新的独特实体，我们能够更好地满足从有沟通障碍和差异的个体到具有健康沟通能力的个体的全谱沟通需求。这种观点文章的形式使我们能够综合沟通科学与公共卫生之间未得到充分审视的交叉点，并在缺乏既定实证证据基础的情况下倡导一个新兴框架。
