Services to people from ethnocultural communities

People from ethnocultural communities can access health and social services in a manner that respects their ethnocultural and linguistic reality.

Different measures are in place to ensure and improve the accessibility of services offered to these people.

In some regions, interpretation and translation services are available. These services allow people who are not fluent enough in the French or English language to understand and/or be understood by healthcare professionals. Interpreters improve and facilitate verbal and cultural communication between the professional and the user.

Several situations may require the presence of an interpreter. For example:

• the medical history, evaluation and triage in an emergency department;
• the diagnosis, prognosis, treatment plan and care plan;
• conferences or information or education sessions;
• psychosocial or mental health interventions;
• obtaining free and informed consent;
• understanding the use of medication, the dosage and possible side effects;
• the use of restraints or confinement;
• end-of-life situations and decisions associated with them.

Providing interpretation services is one way to respect the rights and obligations set out in the Act respecting health and social services  and safely provide high-quality services.

The institutions are responsible for informing the user of the possibility of having free and confidential access to the services of a formal interpreter. The benefits of using these services must also be presented to the person.

The use of an informal interpreter on site or by any other technological means of communication allows the user’s preferences to be respected while facilitating access- and logistics-related issues. The type and conditions of interpretation services must be discussed before the user decides to use the services of an interpreter.

A few institutions or facilities offer health and social services in French, but also in other languages:

• Montreal Chinese Hospital (Chinese);
• Santa Cabrini Hospital (Italian);
• CHSLD Dante (Italian);
• CHSLD Polonais Marie-Curie Sklodowska (Polish).

Refugees can have an assessment of their wellbeing and physical health upon arrival in Québec. The Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration informs the health clinics mandated with refugee arrival to offer them these specific services.

The Regional Program for the Settlement and Integration of Asylum Seekers (PRAIDA)  contributes to the wellbeing of asylum seekers and their families, with respect for their rights and dignity. PRAIDA’s intake service is the point of entry into the health and social services system for these people and those with a precarious immigration status.

PRAIDA is administered by the Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux du Centre-Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal. Its mission is to facilitate the settlement and integration of asylum seekers in Québec.

The mandate of the Comité provincial pour la prestation des services de santé et des services sociaux aux personnes issues des communautés ethnoculturelles is to advise the Minister of Health and Social Services on the accessibility and provision of health and social services. Committee members may hold consultations, solicit opinions, and receive and hear requests from individuals, organizations or associations.