Healthcare Visit Planning Tools
Communication Access Tool
Introduction
Improving Healthcare Outcomes through Effective Communication
Communication Access Tool
Good healthcare communication often depends upon whether providers have asked the right questions in advance. This is true across settings (e.g., office visits, outpatient appointments, hospital admission, clinical assessment, discharge planning, emergency, etc.).
All people need patient and respectful providers. To show respect, healthcare workers should speak directly with the patient rather than with a family member or companion, use tools and technologies to support effective communication, and allow for adequate time during appointments.
Knowing and acting upon the information gathered in this intake form creates an environment for a successful visit.
Purpose:
1. To increase effective information sharing between healthcare providers and patients with disabilities
2. To get and give usable, accessible, and customized communication access information across diverse healthcare settings and systems
3. To help providers obtain and add communication access information to a patient’s health record
Instructions for Healthcare Providers
Instructions:
- Before the visit,
- Ask all patients to complete the intake form (“Communication Access Tool”).
- Record responses to the questions in a consistent and easy-to-access place in the patient’s health record.
- Ensure these responses are always reviewed before and during appointments.
- Ensure that the accommodations are procured prior to the patient’s arrival (e.g., scheduling interpreters).
- During the visit,
- Confirm and update the patient’s needs.
Communication Access Tool
based on Communication Needs:
Download a Print-Only Version of the PDF
Acknowledgements
Improving Healthcare Outcomes through Effective Communication
Communication Access Tool
Developed by ...
June I Kailes, Disability, Policy Consultant, Project Director
Jessica Gormley, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Assistant Professor, UNMC Munroe-Meyer Institute
Megan Juring, Public Policy, Project Manager
Sarah Blackstone, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Liaison, CERV Board of Directors
in collaboration with
Patient-Provider Communication Network, Jessica Gormley, Rachel Santiago, Tami Altschuler
CERV of the Monterey Peninsula, Sarah Blackstone, Harvey Pressman
The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies, Shaylin Sluzalis and Germán Parodi
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Service Center, Susan Coulter
California Agencies for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Anita Aaron
This resource was funded in part by Ability Central, a nonprofit in Oakland, CA, that expands communication access for people with disabilities.
References/Resources
Disability Equity Collaborative. “Healthcare Resources”. https://www.disabilityequitycollaborative.org/healthcare-resources/#documenting-disability-status
Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA). https://www.hearingloss.org/about-hlaa/
Patient-Provider Communication Network. https://www.patientprovidercommunication.org
June Isaacson Kailes, Disability Policy Consultant. “Questions to Ask for Identifying Communication and Accommodation Needs”, https://www.jik.com