Health Education and Improvement Wales 'Opening the Door' increasing Welsh language use in the NHS

Published 05/06/2024

HEIW has commissioned “Opening the Door” (Agor y Drws), a new one-day bespoke session for NHS leaders and managers which will help support and promote the use of Welsh by the workforce for the benefit of patients.

The session aims to provide attendees with an opportunity to think anew about using the Welsh language more effectively in health and care settings in every part of the NHS. It also opens the door to some of the opportunities open to NHS workers to learn Welsh, or to revive their latent Welsh skills. It directly addresses some of the challenges faced by Health Boards in the context of the legislative demands of the Welsh Language Standards – and gives practical advice and guidance on how to answer these compliance issues.

This is set in the context of More Than Just Words which is the Welsh Government’s strategic framework for promoting the Welsh language in health and social care. A key element of that framework is the Active Offer where a service is provided in Welsh without someone having to ask for it. It is the responsibility of everyone who provides care services for people and their families across Wales to deliver the Active Offer.

The course is delivered in partnership with Darparu, the training arm of the Department of Welsh and Celtic Studies at Aberystwyth University. The first two sessions took place recently with a group of managers and leaders from Public Health Wales with over 25 people in attendance.

Dafydd Bebb, Board Secretary and Executive Lead for Welsh at HEIW said:

“We know that treating patient in their first language leads to be better clinical outcomes. HEIW welcomes the commencementof the Agor y Drws or Opening the Door programme as it will provide leaders and manager within NHS Wales with the confidence and tools to improve the Welsh language skills of our workforce and consequently patient care.”

Chris Jones, HEIW’s Chair and Welsh Language Champion said:

“Language is an important and fundamental tool to enable good and reliable communication. Recognising the Welsh language as the mother tongue, y mamiaith, for some patients and communities across Wales - this programme enables leaders and managers to make progress in ensuring a sustainable and tangible offer for the Welsh language delivered at the point of care.”