Communicating with a person with developmental disability: overview
Up to 80% of people with developmental disability have some difficulty communicating. An estimated 25% of people with cerebral palsy, intellectual disability, or autism have little or no functional speech and need access to a range of augmentative and alternative communication systems and strategies. Hearing and visual impairments can also impact on communication.
Communication difficulty in people with developmental disability can affect their:
- speech production
- receptive language functions (eg listening, understanding speech)
- expressive language functions (eg commenting, having a conversation, asking and answering questions).
Interventions to improve communication can have a profound impact on the lives of people with developmental disability. Effective communication can enable participation and independence, and reduce frustration and behaviours of concern. Implement communication interventions as early as possible to optimise communication and behaviour change; see Early childhood interventions. The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has more information on early intervention support for children and adults. Interventions to improve communication should be included in the person’s NDIS plan.
Poor communication is associated with delayed diagnosis and adverse health outcomes in people with developmental disability. The attitudes and skills of communication partners (eg carers, health professionals) can also impact on successful communication with the person with developmental disability.
The general practitioner has a key role in establishing successful communication with a person with developmental disability. Establishing direct communication with the person helps to determine their needs and preferences, and inform decisions about their health care. Resources are available to assist the general practitioner in communicating with a person with a developmental disability1.