Healthcare Access Gaps Persist for French-Preferring Citizens in Canada’s Only Officially Bilingual Province: Analysis of New Brunswick Patient Care Experience Survey Data

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Healthcare Access Gaps Persist for French-Preferring Citizens in Canada’s Only Officially Bilingual Province

Healthcare Access Gaps Persist for French-Preferring Citizens in Canada’s Only Officially Bilingual Province: Analysis of New Brunswick Patient Care Experience Survey Data

Author: François Gallant, Lise Babin, James Ted McDonald
Year: 2025
Category: Health Publications

Abstract

Language differences between patients and care providers are a major barrier to delivering quality healthcare. We describe citizen-reported access to healthcare in their preferred official language in New Brunswick by examining survey data from the New Brunswick Health Council (2021 and 2023).

Nearly all New Brunswickers report access to a primary care provider in their preferred official language, but other sectors of primary care (e.g., pharmacy, specialists, telehealth) represent significant challenges for French-preferring citizens. Given New Brunswick's unique context as Canada's only officially bilingual province, we highlight research opportunities that could inform strategies to improve language-concordant healthcare nationally.