A palliative care program for Arabic-speaking patients was launched at the Victorian Arabic Social Services’ head office in Broadmeadows last week.
Health Minister David Davis visited the largely female-run VASS to announce the new, culturally-sensitive palliative care community education initiative, which will share $34.4 million committed to strengthening services for the terminally ill.
VASS staff and volunteers took part in training sessions to become accredited bilingual educators, who can now teach the Arabic-speaking elderly about what palliative care options are available to them.
Northern Metropolitan Region’s Liberal candidate Gladys Liu said that given more than a million Victorian residents were born overseas, it was particularly important to ensure all health services were accessible and appropriate for their needs.
“Yet just seven per cent of contacts provided by palliative care services in Victoria are to people who speak a language other than English,” Ms Liu said
VASS chief executive Leila Alloush is encouraging the Arabic-speaking community to sign up for the free palliative care education sessions.
The Culturally Responsive Palliative Care project targets five culturally and linguistically diverse communities of people speaking Arabic, including those from Croatian, Greek, Polish and Macedonian backgrounds.
VASS bilingual educator Lina Hassan said there was a growing need for education about palliative care services among non-English- speaking communities.
The tailored education sessions are jointly run by VASS, Palliative Care Victoria and the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria.
Ms Hassan said VASS hoped to raise awareness about local palliative services among the Arabic-speaking communities in Broadmeadows, Roxburgh Park, Glenroy, Craigieburn, Fawkner and Epping.
The state government has committed $400,000 over the next four years to improve access to services for people with a life-limiting illness who were born overseas or who do not speak English.
