2016-2017 marks a milestone in the production of evidence-based data on the health of Francophones as well as on the French-language services offered in Ontario.
In collaboration with Entité 4 and the Champlain, South East, Centre and North Simcoe Muskoka LHINs, standardized data collection tools on the offer of French-language services have been deployed in four Ontario regions, where they are now being used by LHIN-funded health service providers.
These tools already provide a comprehensive picture of services available in French in two regions. Thanks to the production of detailed analysis reports, it is now possible to map the offer of French-language services by region, sub-region or even given institutions, or conversely, to locate – depending on the type of service required – professionals within the health system who have French-language skills! The Réseau also hopes to extend the use of these tools to other regions and has already taken steps in this direction.
In addition, the project to collect the linguistic identity of patients in 17 hospitals in the region is continuing. Conducted in collaboration with the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, the Champlain and South East LHINs, as well as the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), this initiative enables the collection of data on Francophones’ health service needs. The Réseau thus obtained, in 2016-2017, a first set of data that will support the planning of French-language health services that meet the specific needs of the local francophone population. These data will also demonstrate the relevance of systematically compiling the linguistic identities of Francophone patients.
Building on these results, the Réseau is continuing its collaboration with the Société Santé en français and its federal partners to extend the scope of evidence-based data across Canada. We hope that the renewal of the Roadmap for Canada’s Official Languages and Health Canada’s Official Languages Health Contribution Program will be an opportunity to make evidence-based data on the health of Francophones a national priority.