Language, tech barriers make it challenging to get COVID-19 resources to some communities

Since the start of the pandemic, people living in Canada have been flooded with crucial public health information regarding the state of the country and ever changing rules and restrictions.

For many, the messaging can be accessed through news organizations, social media as well as public health and government officials.

But sharing information withcommunitieswhere technology or language is a barrier remains a challenge in Waterloo region.

"I think it's something that we know needs attention and needs more work," said Sharlene Sedgwick Walsh, director of healthy living and foundational standards for Region of Waterloo Public Health.

Public health is working with and relies on community partners to ensure COVID-19 information is accessible to all.

"There really needs to be a collective response and I think we want to ensure that all of those community partners have access to that information to share among their groups," she said.

Language, technologybarriers

The Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre works with newcomer and immigrant families in the region.

It helps community members of all backgrounds and language abilities over the phone and virtual meetings. People can also access public health information online in about eight different languages.

Ana Luz Martinez, settlement programs manager, said despite the support available, some people still struggle to understand.

"There are different resources of information. We have municipal, provincial and federal [information] and sometimes they are different," she said. "The way authorities will communicate information is not centralized ... Sometimes even if the interpretation is there, people need to have an interpreter even if it's in different languages."

According to recent data for public health, people whose first language is notEnglish or French are among a list of populations disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and are at higher risk of COVID-19 infection.

Martinez said lack of education could be a contributing factor.

She said somenewcomers may not know how to navigate phone applications or online websites to find the right resources and instead stick to what they do know.

"I think it's a number of factors. You can have your phone but how well do you know how to use it? You can have your computer but not being able ... to search for the information that you need. It's a lack of literacy, sometimes technology as well," she said.

"I think we haven't really targeted that social media with newcomers ... most of them communicate, from what I've seen, through WhatsApp," she added.

Martinez said her organization is brainstorming new ways to connect with all community members such as approaching different faith organizations and communicating the information to others through their trusted leaders.

Reinforcing the message

Community leaders are also working with Old Order Mennonite communities to ensure they're not left in the dark.

Just last month, public health ordered Old Order Mennonite churches and schools to close over safety concerns. More recently, Linwood Public School shut down due to COVID-19 community transmission in the community.

Waterloo Region District School Board is communicating with its parent council to share information, according to Peter Rubenschuh,superintendent of student achievement andwell-being for area six..

"We use School Day as a communication tool at the school level. And it is, I'll say, the more day-to-day operational newsworthy items that we believefamilies should become aware of and I say we have great uptake," he said.

Rubenschuh said there is a small number of families who choose to limit access to technology and therefore the board reaches out to them through telephone or by mail.

He said it's important to continue following up as some communities may be relaxing on the rules.

"I think there's always room for improvement and the notion that we have communicated enough, we can never over communicate ... From the point of view of reminding ourselves and our community about the practices that we've been messaging and that people take them seriously will continue to communicate," he said. "Now is not the time to relax on these efforts."

Meanwhile public health continues to communicate withcommunity leaders and facilitatesCOVID-19 testing in rural areas to identify needs and how to help prevent further spread.