Person-centred care is commonly articulated through three interrelated tenets: initiating the partnership through the patient’s narrative; working the partnership through shared decision-making; and safeguarding the partnership through documentation that ensures continuity of care. Central to all three is the assumption that patients can readily articulate their experiences, values, and goals. For many individuals – including persons with communication disabilities, children, and those navigating linguistic, cultural, or power asymmetries – this assumption does not hold. Drawing on research in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), and informed by perspectives from the global South, this keynote argues that access to narrative is not a given but a communicative right that must be actively enabled. In many African contexts, where oral storytelling traditions remain strong, narrative is foundational to identity, meaning-making, and relational care – yet is often marginalised within biomedical systems. Using examples from health and rehabilitation contexts, the presentation illustrates how AAC principles can be used to elicit and co-construct patient narratives following stroke, in paediatric care, and in multilingual settings where shared language is absent. The keynote further demonstrates how AAC-informed practices support equitable partnerships and shared decision-making, and how documentation of narratives and preferences can safeguard continuity of care across settings. Ultimately, the presentation reframes person-centred care as unattainable without deliberate, culturally responsive communication access.