The World Report on Disability: An impetus to reconceptualize services for people with communication disability

Figures & data

Table I. Examples of activity with an individual focus or a community direction.

Examples of individually-focused activities (with a particular individual with communication disability)	Examples of community-directed activities (with and on behalf of a range of PWCD)
• 1:1 or group therapy, working at ICF impairment, participation, or activity levels.	• Assisting PWCD to establish or maintain consumer groups for self-determination.
• Functional communication therapy—including community education (i.e., TBI).	• Raising awareness of communication disability, its impacts in the community, and promoting the inclusion of PWCD.
• Training conversational partners with a specific individual with communication disability.	• Obtaining funding for research on communication disability or its impact.
• Advocating on behalf of an individual.	• Primary prevention of communication disability, including communication health promotion. For example, universal interventions that sensitize/teach parents about the importance of early play for language development, teaching trainee teachers about vocal hygiene.
	• Universal training on communication disability and interaction strategies for community-based groups.
	• Improving communication environments, i.e., environmental modifications, such as increasing picture based signs in healthcare or retail environments for people with comprehension difficulties, establishing telephone relay services for PWCD.
	• Assisting PWCD with lobbying for policy change and inclusion of PWCD on political agendas.

ICF, International classification of functioning, disability and health; PWCD, people with communication disability; TBI, traumatic brain injury.