What is Communication Impairment?
The World Health Organisation defines an impairment as being “… a problem in body function or structure” (WHO, 2011).
When discussing impairments, it is important that the correct terminology is used, as not to be confused with disability, handicap or disorder. The differences between these three terms are outlined below:
Disability - "condition either caused by accident, trauma, genetics or disease, which may restrict a person's mental processes, senses or mobility" (Disability WORKS Australia, n.d.).
Disorder - "the derangement on the physical and mental health functions of a person" (Dictionary.com, 2011).
Handicap - the result of the disability on a person; they are restricted by their disability.
Speech Pathology Australia (2003) identifies a communication impairment when one or more of the areas of communication is ineffective. The five areas of communication are comprised of Speech, Language, Fluency, Voice and Hearing. Each of these are discussed in more detail on this site.
Fast Facts
Speech Pathology Australia (2003) state that 2.7 million, or 1 in every 7 Australians have communication impairments. These impairments can be present at birth or may be acquired later in life. To break these statistics down further;
- 386,000 children have speech delay issues
- 577,000 school aged children have language difficulties
- 326,000 people stutter
- 2.5 million people have a hearing impairment
- 25,000 have a severe brain injury each year