Access to Health and Social Services in Official Languages

This standard specifies the requirements for health and social service organizations to promote access to safe health and social services in the patient's preferred or required language. The standard provides: 

• Health and social service organizations with guidance on how to ensure quality and safety within their unique organizational and language contexts; 

• Policy makers with a blueprint for the requirements to recognize health and social service organizations that offer quality health and social services to the official language communities in their jurisdictions; and, 

• External assessment bodies with measurable requirements to include in assessment programs of health and social service organizations that offer services to Canada’s official language communities.  

The standard is to be used in conjuction with other HSO standards that apply to health and social service organizations providing health and social services to English-speaking communities in Québec, and French-speaking communities outside of Québec. 

This is a reaffirmation of the standard which applies to health and social service organizations providing health and social services in Canada’s official languages, English and French.