National Standard Guide for Community Interpreting Services: Includes skills and competencies that should be demonstrated by interpreters as well as the health professional to promote the highest quality interpreting. To be used for selecting, monitoring, and evaluating interpreters in a clinical setting.
Think Cultural Health: A self-directed e-learning program designed to equip physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners with cultural and linguistic competencies that will enable them to better treat diverse patient populations. The course has credit value for physicians, nurses, and physician assistants.
Navigating the Health System:
Health Care Needs and Use of Health Care Services Among Newly Arrived Syrian Refugees – A Cross-Sectional Study: Examining the sociodemographic characteristics and usage of healthcare services among Syrian refugees newly resettled in Toronto, this study reveals that most reported high levels of self-perceived physical and mental health. Nonetheless, almost half (49%) suffered from unmet healthcare needs, mostly due to long wait times, costs associated with services, and lack of time to seek healthcare services. Such findings emphasize the need for a more comprehensive strategy to care for refugees beyond the initial resettlement support.
An Overview of Immigrants and Refugees in Canada: Provides definitions for the various immigrant and refugee statuses, an overview of their background, as well as their distribution across Canada.
Barriers and Facilitators to Health Care for Newcomers: Discusses barriers to care and how these can be addressed by health professionals, including issues surrounding eligibility, trust of government, navigating the system, finances, culture, and language.
FAQs About Medication Coverage to Refugees: Presents the medication coverage for refugees under the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) and details the required documentation and process of billing.
Providing Health Care to Medically Uninsured Immigrants and Refugees:This article examines the mounting problem of medically uninsured immigrants and refugees, both globally and in Canada. It supplements existing literature on this issue with empirical conclusions noted by a Scarborough clinic providing care for those without health insurance.
Helping Newcomers Overcome Barriers to Health Care:This resource provides health professionals with recommendations that can help reduce or overcome barriers preventing immigrants and refugees from accessing or receiving quality healthcare in Canada.
Health Care for Canada’s Medically Uninsured Immigrants and Refugees: This article examines cases and challenges of providing care to medically uninsured immigrants and refugees, and provides potential solutions for improving access to health services and insurance to in Ontario and in Canada.
Culture & Health:
Cultural Competence eLearning Modules: Series of 15 open-access multimedia and interactive e-learning modules created to increase the accessibility to and dissemination of cultural competence educational resources. These are applicable to any health providers.
Adaptation and Acculturation: Information on the stages of and barriers to cultural adaptation and integration, and how a physician can tailor certain health messages accordingly. Includes guidelines on exploring how families comprehend their health, and how to facilitate factors of resilience.
A mindful approach- Assessing Child Maltreatment in a Multicultural Setting: Guidelines on understanding the cultural context that underlies suspected incidences of maltreatment, and educating families on appropriate parenting practices. Presents legal obligations of providers and when/how to contact welfare authorities.
Cultural Competence: Description of skill sets and strategies in exploring, understanding, and reconciling different cultural beliefs to improve relationship-building, communication, and outcomes.
Culturally Sensitive Care: This practical guide developed by the College of Nurses of Ontario prepares nurses and other professionals to provide culturally sensitive care. Scenarios illustrate key elements including reflection, cultural knowledge, and client choice and communication.
Embracing Cultural Diversity in Health Care- Developing Cultural Competence: Developed by the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario, this guideline offers an overview of diversity and provides guidance for workplace behaviors and management to better understand and embrace cultures in the clinic.
Culturally Effective Care Toolkit: This toolkit, developed by the American Association of Pediatrics, contains a number of practical, hands-on resources on a number of topic areas to support pediatricians and their staff in providing culturally effective care.
Culturally Effective Care Toolkit- Health Beliefs and Practices: This toolkit, developed by the American Association of Pediatrics, includes a summary and a list of practical resources to support providers in understanding and working with patients with diverse health beliefs and practices.
Culturally Effective Care Toolkit- What is Culturally Effective Pediatric Care?: This toolkit, developed by the American Association of Pediatrics, presents the guiding principles of effective cross-cultural care. It includes a number of resources clarifying the importance of this skill in caring for diverse populations.
Health Literacy: Describes factors that influence the ability of newcomer families to access, understand, evaluate, and communicate health information. Includes links to online training resources for health professionals.
How Culture Influences Health: Describes how culture interacts with patient and practitioner beliefs and approaches to health, disclosure, health promotion, and treatment, and how practitioners can understand this interaction to better their practice.
Asian American Health: National Institutes of Health Medline overview on the unique health concerns of Asian populations in the United States and the genetic, environmental, and cultural factors underlying them.
Hispanic American Health: National Institutes of Health Medline overview on the unique health concerns of Hispanic populations in the United States and the genetic, environmental, and cultural factors underlying them.
African American Health: National Institutes of Health Medline overview on the unique health concerns of African American populations in the United States and the genetic, environmental, and cultural factors underlying them.
Child Development- Issues and Assessment: Presents guidelines on addressing developmental delay in newcomer children: exploring attitudes of families toward development, diseases with development sequelae, clinical tools and timeline to monitor development, suggestions on when to begin school, and referral to supports.
Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: Presents the prevalence, complications, treatment, and legal status of genital mutilation in Canada. Provides guidelines on sensitive discussion to gather perspectives and prevent genital mutilation.
EthnoMed: A repository of information on the perspectives of different cultures on different aspects of health and medicine, and guidelines on effective cross-cultural care and clinical practices for physicians. The user can browse by medical topic or culture.
Think Cultural Health: A self-directed e-learning program designed to equip physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners with cultural and linguistic competencies to better treat diverse patient populations. The program offers course credit value.
Refuge Portal 