Yes, YOU. You can help redefine health literacy. Right now! As long as you’re reading this before August 5, 2019, you can help redefine health literacy. I’ll share the news, the important details, and some resources to get your thoughts going. The news From a recent email update from the CDC: “The Department of Health […]
Patient Education
Multimodality and health literacy, in memory of Gunther Kress
As a confirmed health literacy fan, I’m glad for health professionals’ high level of awareness around health literacy. I am often asked some version of the question: what can we do better as a field to support patients in growing their health literacy? My goal in this short essay is to challenge the way you […]
Infographic: 13 ways to reflect on patient/client communication
Here at Health Communication Partners, we think (and talk and write) about health communication all the time. It’s, y’know, in our name. Of all the possible ways of approaching the issue of communicating with patients, this is one of my favorites. That’s partly because when it comes to communicating as professionals, reflective practice can help […]
LGBTQ health disparities and microaggressions
June is Pride month, and a perfect time to think about the power of our everyday language. If you’ve read around this site or heard my podcast series, you know I’m one of the people interested in how health disparities are related to words, phrases and terms used around issues of health. So this is […]
How common terminology may perpetuate mental health stigma
A few weeks ago, I read a tweet from Dr. Javeed Sukhera about terminology and mental health. The tweet had ‘gone viral,’ and it’s stayed in my mind since then. Next time someone says "mental health" what if we took out "mental" and just said "health?" "I need time off for my health." "I need […]
4 ways to help resist a deficit perspective
Deficit perspectives are sneaky. Maybe the better word is ‘insidious.’ They can worm their way quietly into our work. And when there, they do real damage. Maybe you’ve heard the term. If not, it’s a tendency to maintain a focus on negative instances, examples, or qualities. Like seeing patients as passive recipients. Or centering on what […]