“FALK: First Aid Language Kit for Migrants” is aimed at making healthcare services more accessible for migrants through developing and upgrading language skills on medical issues in the host languages of 6 EU countries (TR, BG, ES, UK, CZ, CY). Language barriers can have extremely negative effects on health because people who face linguistic barriers are less likely to search medical help, follow medical advice, go to follow-up appointments or receive preventive services. In addition, the lack of language skills can be a great barrier to understanding the functioning of the health system. On the other hand, language and communication barriers also hinder the healthcare providers in the receiving country in ensuring proper accessibility, acceptability and quality of services offered to migrants. FALK will address the above challenges through the application of innovative context-related and learner-centred tools for (self) learning developing health-related language and communication skills and providing on-the-go information for immediate access to health services by migrants. The main project outcome (First Aid Language Kit) will provide migrants with country-specific information on the healthcare systems as well as language skills for successfully seeking and receiving medical help. FALK will also facilitate healthcare providers to overcome communication barriers resulting from language differences with migrants, reduce misunderstandings and offer adequate medical help. The project objectives are focused on: - improving language competences of adult migrants on healthcare matters in the host country - facilitating the access to healthcare of adult migrants by providing them with country-specific information about the healthcare systems in 6 EU countries - developing innovative language products and thus improving the capacities of organisations working for the integration, language training and welfare of migrants - supporting healthcare professionals to communicate efficiently with migrant patients and improving the quality of the offered medical services FALK thus addresses three target groups, and namely: 1. Adult migrants (newcomers and resident migrants who lack health-specific language skills) 2. Healthcare providers, especially medical staff working at refugee camps or temporary reception facilities 3. Language educators providing language training to adult migrants The First Aid Language Kit will be developed as a comprehensive multi-device language tool with educational and informative character. The product includes 3 separate elements each one of which provides medical language information for both autonomous learning and learning within formal and non-formal language courses (Medical Language Pyramid in 12 languages, Medical language study-videos in 6 languages, Learning platform providing a Virtual Map on the healthcare systems of the partner countries in 12 languages and a Testing Ground for practicing language content in 6 languages). The language content of the product will be developed within 6 topics distinguished as priority medical areas for addressing migrants’ health needs by the European Parliamentary Research Service. The project outcomes are highly relevant, among others, to newcomer migrants who arrive with different medical consequences of their journey (e.g. injuries, infectious diseases, health problems specific to women, post-traumatic stress, etc.). The project will help them gain new skills to be able to explain adequately their needs related to medical help needed, build up their confidence to search medical attention, follow medical advice, etc. and raise their motivation for language learning. FALK addresses, on one hand, adult migrants, but on the other, also (volunteer) educators providing language training to migrants. They will be offered attractive methodologies, encouraged to multiply their effects at local level and apply them in a language teaching environment in order to improve the quality, attractiveness and accessibility for migrants. This will also improve the capacities of organizations and providers addressing migrant integration issues and especially of organisations from countries which currently face problems with dealing with intensive migrant flows and providing support to migrants, including for learning of the host language. FALK will reach its target groups through creating a EU-wide network of organisations working for the integration and language training of adult migrants, migrant communities, adult education providers, healthcare providers, etc. The network will be used throughout the project for input on users’ needs, product development, feedback, dissemination and impact opportunities. Events for exploitation of the project outcomes will also serve as a forum for exchange of experience and feedback and an opportunity to kick-start a discussion among stakeholders and policy makers on current migrant integration issues.
Language barriers have extremely negative effects on health because people who face linguistic barriers are less likely to search medical help, follow medical advice, go to follow-up appointments or receive preventive services. In addition, the lack of language skills is a great barrier to understanding the functioning of the health system. On the other hand, language and communication barriers also hinder the healthcare providers in the receiving country in ensuring proper accessibility, acceptability and quality of services offered to migrants. To eliminate these barriers, “FALK: First Aid Language Kit for Migrants” project was aimed at making healthcare services more accessible for migrants through developing and upgrading language skills on medical issues in the host languages of 6 EU countries (TR, BG, ES, UK, CZ, CY). To achieve this end, language-specific First Aid Language Kit was developed to overcome communication barriers resulting from language differences with migrants, to reduce misunderstandings and to offer adequate medical help. The project addressed three main target groups, namely newly arrived adult migrants, healthcare providers and language educators. The target groups were reached through many dissemination activities such as national and international meetings, project meetings, pilot workshops, exploitation seminars and multiplication events. As a result of these activities, over 2000 people (migrants, health professionals, language teachers) were directly reached throughout the project cycle. More than 300 adult migrants in each partner country were reached during the project cycle. Including social media posts, emails, newsletters, networking activities, more than 50k people were informed of FALK project aims, activities, products and its results. Especially creation of network with cooperating organizations including regional hospitals, health professionals, trainers, schools and other professionals, migration management offices. These associated partners involved in the project through development, consultations and testing of developed outputs. As for the project activities, a network of more than 50 migrant organizations, adult education providers and healthcare providers were established throughout the project. A medical language pyramid as the first project output was developed in partner languages and selected migrant languages. As the second output, medical language study-videos were created under different titles of types of illness. For the last output, learning platform hosting all language learning products was developed for the target groups for self-paced learning. Learning platform also provides a virtual map on the healthcare systems of the partner countries. During the project, pilot workshops, dissemination and exploitation activities were carried out. Apart from those mentioned above, project implementation plan, partner agreements, quality assurance plan, internal monitoring and evaluation reports, dissemination materials were created and developed throughout the project. One of the major impacts of the FALK project has been directly on the partners themselves. When talking with the partners at the meetings and following any exposure to the games, videos and activities that examine the issues of health care system, migrants and diversity, they have begun to examine their own approaches to these issues and their own behavior towards immigrants and adequate health care. As a result of testing the workshops with target groups (migrants and newcomers) and key stake holders (adult educators, community workers, volunteers, health care providers and students) the project partners have been able to gain a deeper understanding of how to use creative methodologies within a class room environment and to see the potential of the use of creative activities to promote better understandings of the migrants let them access better health care systems. The network created with the associated partners is going to remain after project is finished, and the project partnership will keep the contact on regular basis. The network is and will be a guarantee for practical use of the project and wider dissemination to other professionals. Another longer-term benefit of the project is that the developed materials are available online on the project website which will be maintained or at least 3 more years after the project end. Since the project partners are very active in developing projects and opportunities for migrant integration through education, dissemination of the FALK products and linking them with new initiatives and migrant organizations in the future will continue.