Person-Centered Terminology: Respectful Language About Identity and Health

For example, instead of reducing someone entirely to:

• an illness;
• a disability;
• an STI;
• a sexual behavior;
• a gender identity,

person-centered language keeps the person’s humanity at the center.

It also recognizes that people may prefer different terms for themselves.

Examples include structures such as:

• person with a disability;
• person living with HIV.

Person-centered terminology is broader.

It asks:

• What term does this person prefer?
• What information is actually relevant?
• Is the wording accurate?
• Does the language create unnecessary stigma?

This means person-centered language does not always require person-first wording.

Examples include:

• disabled person;
• autistic person;
• transgender person.

For some communities, identity-first wording expresses pride, culture, or an important part of identity.

Therefore, automatically replacing every identity-first term with person-first language may not actually be person-centered.

The person’s own preference should be considered whenever possible.

A person should not be reduced to:

• an STI diagnosis;
• reproductive status;
• sexual behavior;
• sexual history.

For example, language can focus on a person living with or being diagnosed with a condition rather than treating the condition as the person’s entire identity.

Sexual-health terminology should also avoid suggesting that infection reflects:

• dirtiness;
• morality;
• promiscuity;
• fidelity.

Medical information can be accurate without being stigmatizing.

Terms that reduce someone to an infection can feel stigmatizing.

More person-centered wording may describe:

• a person living with HIV;
• a person diagnosed with an STI;
• a person receiving treatment.

This keeps the medical condition relevant without making it the person’s defining characteristic.

It also supports public-health communication by separating health status from moral judgment.

A transgender or nonbinary person should not be described only in terms of:

• medical transition;
• anatomy;
• assigned sex;
• legal documents.

These details may be relevant in certain healthcare or legal contexts, but they do not define the whole person.

Respectful terminology generally uses the person’s:

• name;
• pronouns;
• stated gender identity

when these are relevant and known.

A person may identify as:

• gay;
• lesbian;
• bisexual;
• asexual;
• queer;
• another orientation.

The person’s identity should not automatically be inferred from:

• current partner;
• past partner;
• sexual behavior;
• marital status.

For example, a bisexual person does not stop being bisexual because their current partner is of one particular gender.

Person-centered terminology avoids relabeling people without their input.

Disabled adults are sometimes described in ways that imply they are:

• childlike;
• dependent;
• asexual;
• incapable of relationships.

Such assumptions can be dehumanizing.

Person-centered language recognizes disabled people as individuals who may have:

• sexual identities;
• relationships;
• desires;
• boundaries;
• reproductive goals.

The appropriate terminology may be person-first or identity-first depending on individual or community preference.

Person-centered terminology does not mean avoiding anatomical words.

Terms such as:

• penis;
• vulva;
• vagina;
• cervix;
• testicles

can be precise and respectful.

The important point is to avoid assuming that anatomy automatically determines:

• gender identity;
• sexual orientation;
• relationship role.

A clinician may need to discuss anatomy separately from identity when providing appropriate care.

For example, public-health research may describe men who have sex with men when focusing on a specific behavior relevant to transmission or healthcare.

This term does not necessarily mean that every person in the group identifies as gay or bisexual.

Likewise, a person’s sexual behavior should not automatically be treated as a complete description of their identity.

Behavior, identity, and attraction can overlap without being identical.

Using wording such as sex worker may be preferred in many contexts because it describes an activity or occupation without reducing a person to a moral category.

However, individual preferences and local terminology vary.

Person-centered communication avoids assuming that all people involved in sex work have:

• identical experiences;
• identical motivations;
• identical identities.

It also distinguishes consensual adult sex work from coercion or trafficking.

Terms such as:

• pregnant woman;
• pregnant person;
• pregnant patient

may each be appropriate in different contexts.

For example, a discussion specifically about women may use women, while a clinical guideline covering everyone capable of pregnancy may use broader wording.

Person-centered terminology does not require one universal phrase.

It requires language that accurately fits the population being described.

For example, it may be more respectful to describe:

• a person with a particular condition;
• a person experiencing a particular situation

rather than turning the condition into the person’s complete label.

However, this principle is not universal.

Many identity terms, such as lesbian or disabled person, may be positively embraced as identities.

Context and self-identification remain central.

Researchers should consider whether categories:

• accurately describe participants;
• reflect current terminology;
• separate identity from behavior;
• avoid unnecessary stigma.

For example, research about sexual orientation may need separate questions about:

• identity;
• attraction;
• behavior.

Using only one category may oversimplify participants’ experiences.

Accurate terminology therefore improves both respect and data quality.

• asking what terminology a patient prefers;
• avoiding assumptions;
• explaining clinical terms;
• using neutral sexual-health language;
• respecting names and pronouns;
• discussing relevant anatomy accurately.

The goal is not simply to avoid offense.

Clear, respectful communication can improve:

• trust;
• understanding;
• disclosure;
• healthcare access.

Person-centered language is therefore both an ethical and practical communication approach.

Identity-first language is automatically disrespectful.
No. Many communities strongly prefer it.

Person-centered language means avoiding direct medical terminology.
No. Accurate clinical language can be respectful.

Everyone in the same community prefers the same terminology.
No. Preferences can vary between individuals.

A person’s behavior automatically defines their identity.
No. Behavior, attraction, and identity are related but distinct.

Person-centered terminology is only about politeness.
No. It can also improve accuracy, healthcare communication, research quality, and inclusion.

1. Person-centered terminology keeps the individual rather than the diagnosis at the center of communication.
2. A clinician may ask which identity language a patient prefers.
3. Person-centered terminology does not always require person-first wording.
4. Some disabled people prefer identity-first language.
5. Sexual-health communication should avoid defining people by STI status.
6. A person’s current relationship does not automatically determine their sexual orientation.
7. Person-centered terminology can improve both respect and clinical accuracy.
8. Understanding person-centered terminology helps explain how language, identity, healthcare, dignity, and sexuality interact.

Language can either recognize the complexity of a person or reduce them to one characteristic.

An inclusive approach uses accurate terminology, respects self-identification where appropriate, distinguishes identity from behavior and anatomy, and recognizes that person-first and identity-first language may both be respectful depending on the individual and context.