AQW 13289/22-27

Ms Paula Bradshaw
Alliance Party
South Belfast

Tabled Date: 12/06/2024
Answered On Date: 06/08/2025
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Health, in light of the new Refugee Integration Strategy, whether his Department has made any changes to how it provides culturally-sensitive interpretation services for people accessing GP services for whom English is not their first language.

Answer:

The Department of Health commissions the Business Services Organisation (BSO) to provide an Interpreting service to Health and Social Care providers in Northern Ireland to improve access to HSC services and provide support those who do not speak English proficiently. BSO is committed to providing a culturally-sensitive service that is responsive to the needs of its service users and is proactively scoping ways of increasing awareness of the service to ensure greater accessibility.

I want to assure the member that the Department of Health has worked extensively with TEO in the development of the Refugee Integration Strategy and the associated delivery plan.