South Africa's speech-language therapy (SLT) and audiology professions face challenges in achieving linguistic and cultural integration (i.e., the meaningful incorporation of diverse linguistic and cultural perspectives into training and practice), a critical aspect for effectively serving the country's diverse population....
No actionable clinical change — this is an education and training survey; however, audiology programs and clinic owners in multilingual or multicultural settings should note the call for stronger linguistic and cultural integration in curricula.
As audiology moves toward culturally responsive care, understanding training gaps in diverse countries like South Africa can inform curriculum reform globally and improve outcomes for underserved populations.
- 01Survey examined South African audiology and SLT students' views on cultural and linguistic training.
- 02Highlights potential gaps in preparing students to serve linguistically diverse patient populations.
- 03Findings are self-reported perceptions, not objective measures of competency.
- 04Relevant to audiology education reform in multilingual, multicultural settings.
- 05No patient outcome data; implications are for training programs rather than clinical protocols.
South African audiology and SLT undergraduate training may not adequately integrate linguistic and cultural diversity.
studypartially supported- PMID
- 42393725
- DOI
- 10.1186/s12909-026-09840-1.
- Journal
- BMC Medical Education
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 4
- Population
- South African speech-language therapy and audiology undergraduate students
- Intervention
- Survey on linguistic and cultural integration in professional training
Primary outcomes
Student views on linguistic integration in training; Reported practices regarding cultural competency in curricula
