New Brunswick’s official languages commissioner has released two investigation reports into the province’s virtual health service.
Shirley MacLean said there have been “serious breaches of the Official Languages Act” related to eVisitNB.
MacLean’s office launched the investigations after receiving several complaints alleging deficiencies in the provision of French-language services.
“None of the complainants were able to receive the services they requested in the official language of their choice, French,” the commissioner noted in one of the two reports.
In most cases, MacLean said, the complainants submitted their requests in French and eventually received the following message in English: “Unfortunately, I am not able to understand your request well enough to provide treatment.”
Complainants also identified issues with the quality of the French on the eVisitNB website as well as an automated message that apears when users select their language of choice saying that “deselecting English may increase the waiting time.”
“The inability to access adequate healthcare services in the official language of choice is more than a simple denial of legislated rights. It may lead to misunderstandings on the part of either patient or provider that may in turn lead to dire or dangerous consequences,” said MacLean.
While eVisitNB services are provided by a third-party company, the commissioner said it is up to government to ensure they are meeting linguistic obligations.
MacLean has made several recommendations to the Department of Health, such as ensuring all eVisitNB users can obtain services in the official language of their choice, and that users will not experience delays beacuse of the language they choose.
