ASHA Learning Pass

This presentation describes the evidence and future directions for research, practice, and policy to address factors that contribute to disparities in care between minority and non-minority patients. A growing body of evidence demonstrates that persons living with all types of communication disabilities experience disparities in the receipt of high-quality health care services. The Institute of Medicine’s report “Unequal Treatment” describes three factors that contribute to differences in care between minority and non-minority patients, including: (1) clinical appropriateness, need, and patient preferences; (2) operation of the health care systems and legal and regulatory climates; and (3) providers’ bias, stereotyping, and various uncertainties when interacting with minority patients. While all three factors contribute to differences, the latter two contribute to disparities, and are addressed in this presentation.

This course is a recorded session from the 2021 ASHA Convention Virtual Library (session 2111V). The session was part of the Health and Health Care Equity in Communication Disorders Research Symposium.

Learning Outcomes
You will be able to:

• Describe the social model of disability and how it aligns with disparity models 
• Identify factors within the health care setting that contribute to disparities in care for persons with communication disabilities 
• Describe how research, policy, and practice can work together toward addressing disparities in care for persons with communication disabilities

Presenter Information

Megan Morris, PhD, MPH, CCC-SLP (Presenting Author), is an Associate Professor in the Division of General Internal Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Dr. Morris is a health services researcher who aims to address and promote equitable and accessible health care for patients with diverse types of communication disabilities. She focuses on provider and health care organization-level factors that negatively impact the quality of care delivered to patients with disabilities.

Financial Disclosures:

• Stipend and registration fee waived for 2021 ASHA Convention for role as coordinator for the 2021 ASHA Symposium

Nonfinancial Disclosures:

• No nonfinancial relationships relevant to the content of the session

Assessment Type

Self-assessment—Think about what you learned and report on the Completion Form how you will use your new knowledge.

To earn continuing education credit, you must complete the learning assessment by December 14, 2027.

Program History and CE Information

Content origination date: November 2021
End date: December 14, 2027

This course is offered for 0.1 ASHA CEUs (Advanced level, Professional area).