Overview

During the initial four-year phase of the Project, McGill University was allocated $11.9 million by Health Canada to improve English language health services in Quebec’s regions

Four measures have been implemented over a four year period:

Measure 1: A three-pronged language training program:

1. English second language courses for French-speaking personnel in the 17 health and social services regions covered by the program;
2. French second language courses for English-speaking personnel, in particular those persons working in a French-speaking environment;
3. Development of distance educational materials to support language instructors and learners.

Measure 2: A retention and distance support program comprised of:

Section 1: Retention of English-speaking graduates in the regions

The objectives for encouraging English-speaking graduates to remain in the regions are to:

• increase the number of English-speaking students interning in institutions serving the English-speaking population in the regions;
• increase the number of English-speaking graduates who will work in the regions after interning there.

Section 2: Distance Support

Our distance professional support objective is to increase the retention rate for English-speaking professionals in the regions by offering distance support and professional development activities.

Measure 3: Seminars and conferences

This measure is intended to support communication among professionals and share best practices. The meetings contribute to the McGill project evaluation and research program.

Measure 4: An Innovation Fund

Measure 4 consists of an innovation fund supporting local and regional initiatives involving projects for retaining English-speaking personnel in the regions.