General Translation Quality Survey
Who We Are
Language Services is a team that is newly established within the Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH). The aim of establishing this team is to have a centralized system in place, so to better provide our communities with equal health care access by lifting cultural and language barriers.
How We Got Here
Language and cultural barriers can pose challenges such as navigating the health care system and accessing health care. A way around this is to have a systemic approach to ensure that materials and communications that are important for patient care are translated into different languages, and to make sure that the translations are contextually accurate and culturally appropriate.
In August 2020, Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) initiated a review of translation practices across the region. VCH worked with an external advisory group comprising representatives from neighbourhood houses, S.U.C.C.E.S.S., Mosaic, Immigrant Services of BC, Provincial Health Services Authority, VCH staff, and medical staff to guide a comprehensive stakeholder engagement process.
Across all engagement efforts, we hear that translation should be centralized to ensure translation quality and consistency. A systematic and centralized approach will allow us to make sure that the translations are contextually accurate and culturally appropriate, and that we would be able to continuously provide patients with access to translated information be it in-person materials or information online. The review informed the VCH Translation Framework as well as Language Services.
What We Do
Language and cultural barriers can pose challenges such as navigating the health care system and accessing health care. One way to provide comprehensive health care services to our communities, is to translate health care materials and information into different languages within the VCH service areas. These health care materials and information include but are not limited to: patient health education materials, self-care guidebooks, handouts, brochures, information bulletin on vch.ca, and various materials on topics such as post-anesthesia care, medical procedure preparation, newborn care, long-term care home, vaccination updates, weather alerts, VCH news and service updates.
What We Hope to Achieve
We hope that by providing easy access to translated materials online and in-person, you feel more informed going in and out of your appointments, such as having a better idea of what your conditions are, or what your treatment options are. At the same time, we aim to provide our communities with timely information on matters that are relevant to the public's health and wellbeing.
How You Can Provide Feedback
We would like your feedback. Here at VCH, we highly value our engagement with our communities, and we would like to see whether the translated materials have made a difference in your experience accessing health care services. If you would like to provide suggestions or reach out to us for any translation related concerns, please email rose.jen@vch.ca.
Who's Listening
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Email rose.jen@vch.ca