Three progressive cultural topics are examined as they relate to speech-language pathology and audiology.

Because negative feelings toward the elderly can result in adverse effects in healthcare settings, in “Ageism Among Graduate Students in Communication Sciences and Disorders: A Longitudinal Analysis,” Heape et al. tested 80 graduate students in speech-language pathology to determine the presence and level of ageism using the Fraboni Scale of Ageism. They conclude that positive impacts could be gained by development of graduate curriculum that encompasses all age groups, including the elderly.

In “Systems of Oppression in Geriatric Clinical Service Delivery,” Kendall builds on previous work related to forms of oppression by defining institutional, symbolic, and individual systems of oppression. Additionally, she provides clinical examples specific to working in communication sciences disorders settings and suggestions as to how clinicians can disrupt oppression in the workplace.

In “The Complexity of Health Disparities: More Than Just Black–White Differences,” Ellis and Jacobs bring health disparities back to light given the recent findings from 2020 indicating that Hispanic and African Americans are more than twice as likely to die from COVID-19 than White Americans. They provide definitions, review vulnerable populations and the interaction between social determinants and health disparities, and provide suggestions on how to achieve equity

Learning Outcomes
You will be able to:

• explain the negative impacts of ageism and promote advancements in this area
• define institutional, symbolic, and individual oppression and advocate to disrupt systems of oppression
• identify populations who are vulnerable to health disparities and opportunities to achieve equity

Articles in This Course

1. Ageism Among Graduate Students in Communication Sciences and Disorders: A Longitudinal Analysis by Amber Heape, Brandon Causey, Taylor Lloyd, and Stevonna Jeter, published in SIG 15, Volume 5, Issue 5, October 13, 2020
2. Systems of Oppression in Geriatric Clinical Service Delivery by Diane L. Kendall, by authors, published in SIG 15, Volume 6, Issue 1, January 5, 2021
3. The Complexity of Health Disparities: More Than Just Black–White Differences by Charles Ellis and Molly Jacobs, published in SIG 15, Volume 6, Issue 1, January 5, 2021

DEI Professional Development Requirement

This course counts toward the ASHA certification maintenance professional development requirement for DEI (which encompasses cultural competency; cultural humility; culturally responsive practice; and diversity, equity, and inclusion). See more courses that count toward this requirement or read more about professional development requirements for certification maintenance.

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