Communicating about Health Equity: Why Is There So Much Hesitancy among Communication Professionals?

by Chelsea Dade

​“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place,” said George Bernard.
 
I’ve been thinking about the phrase that is circumventing our society, “stay safe at home.” While it’s used as advice to the general public, this term means different things to different people.
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What if you lack a home? What if you are in an abusive relationship? What if you cannot afford basic amenities to live?
 
As communication professionals, we have to acknowledge that one common message cannot always translate, in words or in actions, for everyone. Just because a message is received, doesn't mean everyone can act upon that message.
 
I’m a Health Communication Specialist who believes in the power of communication to improve health equity. But I’ve found that there is a great deal of hesitation when it comes to health communication professionals communicating about health equity. I’ve broken my hypothesis into three probable reasons. 

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1. Health Communication Professionals don’t know how to communicate about health equity. In my personal observation from the way my work in equity has been devalued by communication firms, I have come to the conclusion that there’s an equity knowledge gap among communication professionals. However, if health equity is accepted as a fundamental principle, why then do professionals lack knowledge about health equity? Knowledge about health equity is not the same as knowledge about how to communicate about health equity. My take on this: listen to those who work in health equity spaces, then begin to create communication materials.
2. The lack of diversity in the field is contributing to a lack of communication about health equity. Some communication professionals might view health equity as “unrelated” to communication. But health equity at its core, is about acknowledging diversity. A 2018 Harvard Business Review analysis of federal labor statistics found the industry was 87.9 % White, 8.3 % African American, 2.6 % Asian American, and 5.7 % Hispanic or Latinx. This data clearly shows that there is an equity gap in the representation of people of color in the communication field. If the field is not diverse, communication that addresses issues that matter to diverse audiences, such as health equity, are more likely to be overlooked.
3. There is a lack of incentive to communicate about health equity. I also believe that there’s a lack of incentive for the communication industry to prioritize themes of health equity, especially if these themes are not prioritized by the clients the industry attracts. But there’s hope. In my observation, many industries are now in the process of discovering why Diversity and Inclusion practices, or “D&I,” make good business sense. Prioritizing D&I is important for communication agencies, because it can help organizations better understand their clients, foster creativity, and bring new voices to the table.

 
Young professionals like me, including Generation Z and Millennials, highly value diversity and inclusion. Now is the time! Communicators have the unique power to make this change, one conversation at a time. 

Picture credit: https://unsplash.com/photos/V5vqWC9gyEU
References
Chitkara, Angela. (2018). PR Agencies Need to Be More Diverse and Inclusive. Here’s How to Start, Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2018/04/pr-agencies-need-to-be-more-diverse-and-inclusive-heres-how-to-start.
 
About the author
Chelsea Dade, a guest blogger for this post, is a health communication professional with an eye for inequities in health. She is the Creator & Executive Director of Communicate for Health Justice, a youth-driven editorial platform mixing social justice concepts into healthcare editorials. Read Chelsea's full bio at https://chelseaddade.wixsite.com/mysite.