Match francophone clients and staff with French-language skills
The Identify Employees and Identify Francophones strategies must precede the Match Francophones strategy.
This strategy will enable your organization to equip your staff to match Francophone clients with employees who have French language skills, without those clients having to ask.
By ensuring that Francophones can receive services in the language in which they are most comfortable, you improve the quality, safety and efficiency of care. By reducing language barriers, you provide optimal and equitable care.
Here’s how the different groups in your organization can implement this strategy.
For all:
Apply best practices for professionals and physicians in the following winning strategies: raising organizational awareness, identifying employees and identifying Francophones.
For unilingual English-speaking healthcare professionals and physicians:
1. Identify your colleagues who have French language skills that can help you serve Francophones.
2. Use key sentences in French to inform your Francophone client of the steps you are taking to match him with a professional who has French language skills.
3. Ask for the assistance of a colleague with French language skills to help you serve the Francophone client.
Tools to help you implement this strategy are available in the Practical tools.
1. Ensure that a sufficient number of professionals with French-language skills are available on each shift.
2. Ensure that matches are made between Francophones and staff with French language skills.
3. Develop a policy and procedures that support best practices related to matching Francophones with employees who have French language skills.
4. Ensure your staff is aware of the policy by including it in your organization’s Employee Handbook, as well as in the employee orientation.
5. Define and monitor performance indicators for the number of Francophones receiving services in French.
6. Report on these performance indicators to your governance.
Tools to help you implement this strategy are available in the Practical tools.
1. Adopt a policy and procedures that support best practices related to matching Francophones with employees who have French language skills.
2. Receive reports and monitor performance indicators for the number of Francophones receiving services in French.
3. Ensure that the local Francophone community is consulted on a regular basis to better understand its needs in terms of French-language health services.
Tools to help you implement this strategy are available in the Practical tools.
Refer Francophones to external providers offering French-language services
The Identify Employees and Identify Francophones strategies must precede the Refer Francophones strategy.
This strategy will enable your organization to ensure that Francophones have access to the same quality of care when you are unable to offer care and services in French.
Here’s how the different groups in your organization can implement this strategy.
1. Be informed about the referral agreements developed with external partners who offer services of the same quality in French.
2. Inform your clients when the required service is not available in French, and recommend a referral to a health partner with whom an agreement has been established.
1. Establish formal referral agreements with external partners for all services not available in French, and ensure that services are of the same quality and have similar wait times.
2. Ensure that your staff are aware of the referral agreements developed with external partners who offer services of the same quality in French.
3. Develop a policy and procedures that support best practices related to external referrals of Francophones.
4. Ensure your staff is aware of the policy by including it in your organization’s Employee Handbook, as well as in the employee orientation.
5. Define and monitor performance indicators for external referrals for French-language services.
6. Report on these performance indicators to your governance.
Tools to help you implement this strategy are available in the Practical tools.
1. Adopt a policy and procedures that support best practices related to external referrals of Francophones.
2. Receive reports and monitor performance indicators for external referrals for French-language services.
3. Ensure that the local Francophone community is consulted on a regular basis to better understand its needs in terms of French-language health services.
Tools to help you implement this strategy are available in the Practical tools.
