Health Equity Initiative
  • About
    • About
    • History
    • Leadership
    • Community
    • Partners
    • Impact
    • Gallery
    • Grantees
    • Contact Us
  • Blog
  • Activities
    • Community Building
    • Partnerships
    • Education and Advocacy
    • Training and Capacity-building
    • Racism is a Health Equity Issue Pledge
    • Community Leaders Forums
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Past Events >
      • Film Discussions
      • Summits
      • Socials
      • Webinars
      • Global Health Networking Events
      • Events Series
  • Resources
    • Reports
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • Community Leaders Forums
    • Infographics
    • Mindmaps
    • Toolkits
    • Miscellaneous
    • Links
    • News
    • Film Discussions
    • COVID-19 and Health Equity Resources
  • Take Action
Donate
Picture

Health Equity Blog

Our blog features perspectives from Health Equity Initiative's team and members, as well as guest authors. We cover cross-sectoral efforts, narratives, news, and stories of hope, healing, community engagement, and partnerships to advance health equity. ​

Picture
Starting from April 2025, the Health Equity Blog is supported by a generous unrestricted grant from Macy’s Inc.
Picture

​If you are a professional or a writer who is passionate about health, racial, and social equity, consider contributing to our blog! Visit our Volunteer page to learn more.

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

4/28/2020

3 Comments

 
by Chelsea Dade
Picture
​“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.
​
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. 

  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. 

3 Comments
Louisiana link
6/8/2021 11:08:58 pm

Great article! Thank you for sharing this informative post, and looking forward to the latest one.

Reply
Jeffrey link
9/11/2021 07:12:04 am

Best content, keep updating.

Reply
Duct Cleaners Muncie link
9/10/2022 03:07:08 am

Great reading yourr post

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    January 2024
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    January 2023
    August 2022
    June 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    November 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

    Editors:
    Renata Schiavo, PhD, MA, CCL
    ​Paige Hammond, CHES
    Guest posts are by invitation only. 
Picture
201 Varick Street, FRNT 1, #328
New York, NY 10014-9998
Copyrights © 2011 - 2025 · Health Equity Initiative
​
A federally recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
Vertical Divider
Take Action
Donate
Become a Partner
Vertical Divider
News
Email Sign Up
​Careers/Internships
Contact Us
Vertical Divider
Follow Us
  • About
    • About
    • History
    • Leadership
    • Community
    • Partners
    • Impact
    • Gallery
    • Grantees
    • Contact Us
  • Blog
  • Activities
    • Community Building
    • Partnerships
    • Education and Advocacy
    • Training and Capacity-building
    • Racism is a Health Equity Issue Pledge
    • Community Leaders Forums
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Past Events >
      • Film Discussions
      • Summits
      • Socials
      • Webinars
      • Global Health Networking Events
      • Events Series
  • Resources
    • Reports
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • Community Leaders Forums
    • Infographics
    • Mindmaps
    • Toolkits
    • Miscellaneous
    • Links
    • News
    • Film Discussions
    • COVID-19 and Health Equity Resources
  • Take Action