PEI

Seniors health strategy looks at 'unique needs' of French speakers

French-speaking seniors and caregivers will be an active part of developing P.E.I.'s new seniors health and wellness strategy.

'We want to gain a really good understanding of their experiences with health care'

The province is in the middle of developing a new seniors health strategy. (Thomas Peter/Reuters)

French-speaking seniors and caregivers will be an active part of developing P.E.I.'s new seniors health and wellness strategy.

The Department of Health is setting up focus groups to learn more about how to best meet the needs of seniors.

The Department of Health wants to gain a complex understanding of the experience of Islanders, says Michael Corman. (Randy McAndrew/CBC)

"We're trying to really gain a complex understanding of the experiences of Islanders, specifically in the seniors, near seniors and caregivers category," said Michael Corman, principal advisor for seniors health.

"We know that the French population here is a linguistic minority and we want to gain a really good understanding of their experiences with health care and wellness programs:  their understanding of what's working well, what's not working well, and give us some direction on ways to perhaps transform systems and better reflect their own experiences and their own unique needs."

It's not too late to be a part of the process. The deadline to contact the Department of Health to express your interest is Monday.

With files from Brittany Spencer