Welcome to the Introduction to Health Communication module.
Acknowledgement of Country
We would like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which this module was designed and developed, the Yuggera and Turrbal people. We invite you to learn about and acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which you join us.
We would like to pay our respects to the Ancestors and Descendants of these lands and acknowledge their continued cultural and spiritual connections to Country. We would also like to recognise their valuable contributions to Australian and global society.
This is an Introductory module about health communication – the first in a suite of modules! Health communication takes many forms. It is worth making explicit that acknowledging Country can be an important health communication practice in and of itself – one that can be tailored to its context and audience and can serve a specific purpose. With that in mind, we would like to acknowledge the tremendous contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to Western understandings of health communication.
Learning Objectives
Let’s dive into the learning objectives for this module:
By the end of this module, you will be able to:
- Understand the central role of health communication in supporting the health and wellbeing of individuals, communities and populations.
- Identify the range of health contexts, audiences and purposes of health communication.
- Identify the features of successful health communication practices.
- Recognise the role that values and ethical practice play in health communication.
Estimated learner time: 35 minutes
1. Introduction
Now let’s get started! We invite you to listen to Dr Amy Hickman as she maps out the breadth and depth of health communication. Can you notice the varied contexts where the health and wellbeing of people is shaped by health communication practice? We hope you come away with a deeper understanding of what health communication is and its central importance to all that we do in the health disciplines.
What stood out for you as you listened in on the what, the where, and the how of health communication? While we might be tempted to focus on our message first, we need to identify and understand our audience (who we are communicating with), so our words, visuals and written texts are received and understood. We also need to be aware of what the outcome of the health communication should be—what our purpose is in speaking, writing or designing health communication. As we communicate, we need to consider if we are excluding anyone and revise our approach to be more inclusive. We can do this by examining our own standpoints and knowledge systems to become aware of our own blind spots when we communicate.
Perspectives on Health Communication
With these principles in mind, we invite you to listen to a panel of health practitioners and academics in allied health, public health, and communication studies as they speak from their lived experiences of health communication across these fields.
Let’s tune in now to learn about what health communication means to our panel.
Health communication is all about understanding how we communicate, not just in our words, but with our eye contact, gestures, and how we position ourselves physically when in dialogue with others. (1) Health communication is about being aware of issues of power between client and clinician, and how we engage in reciprocal respect for clients, community partners and other professionals who might not share our disciplinary perspectives. (2)