COMMITTED
TO OUR COMMUNITIES
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ANNUAL REPORT
2020-2021

MESSAGE FROM THE BOARD CHAIR AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

A year unlike any other

Yves Lévesque

Board Chair

Lisa Gotell

Executive Director

WHO WE ARE

Entité 4 builds strategic relationships with community partners and key stakeholders within the health system to plan and develop health services in French.

OUR MISSION

In order to improve access to health services in French, Entité 4 facilitates community engagement and provides innovative advice to its partners on planning, organizing and integrating diverse, high quality health care services.

OUR VISION

Entité 4 is known for its contribution to the development of an integrated health system which offers excellent quality of care and responds to the needs of Francophones.

OUR VALUES

INNOVATION

Be creative and think outside the box to put forward efficient models for organizing health care services.

INTEGRITY

Maintain consistency of thought, action and speech and display integrity in the management of public funds.

COLLABORATION

Maintain an attitude of collaboration with Entité 4’s partners: cooperating with the existing local health system will help improve community health and access to services in French.

RIGOUR

Maintain high standards of quality and rely on accurate data so that Entité 4’s credibility remains indisputable.

OUR TEAM

Lisa Gotell

Executive Director (since March 2021)

Director of Planning (until March 2021)

Estelle Duchon

Executive Director (until January 2021)

Sylvie Boulet

Planning Officer (until January 2021)

Safia Fakim

Planning Officer

Christine Morrison

Communications and Community Liaison Officer

Lynda Rooke

Executive Assistant, Management, Finance and Human Resources

OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CENTRAL REGION

Yves Lévesque, Chair

Narjiss Lazrak, Vice-President

Lara Pietrolungo

CENTRAL EAST REGION

Mireille Huneault (since June 2020)

Myriam Innocent (since June 2020)

Mélissa Joseph (until August 2020)

Severin Egatsi (since June 2020)

Jules Nkamtchou (since June 2020)

NORTH SIMCOE MUSKOKA REGION

Lyne Audette, Board Secretary

Jean Bouchard, Treasurer

Mylène Feytout-Eward

OUR FRANCOPHONE COMMUNITIES

Ontario is home to the largest Francophone population in Canada, outside of Quebec. Currently, nearly 70,5001 Francophones live within Entité 4’s catchment area.

The rich diversity in the Francophone populations served by Entité 4 translates into complex and varied health needs. The growing Francophone communities within the Greater Toronto Area include diverse ethnic communities and newcomers to Canada. A little further north, the North Simcoe Muskoka area boasts one of the oldest Francophone communities in Canada, dating back more than 400 years.

1All statistics from the 2016 Census according to the 2009 Inclusive Definition of Francophone

12,345

FRANCOPHONES

NORTH SIMCOE MUSKOKA REGION

  • Simcoe County (North)
  • District of Muskoka

27,065

FRANCOPHONES

CENTRAL EAST REGION

  • Scarborough (City of Toronto)
  • Durham Region
  • Northumberland County
  • City of Kawartha Lakes
  • City of Peterborough
  • Haliburton County

31,045

FRANCOPHONES

CENTRAL REGION

  • North York (City of Toronto)
  • York Region
  • Simcoe County (South)

Challenges facing Francophone patients and their families:

  • Patients and their families struggle to navigate the health care system, especially when seeking services in French.
  • Health services in French are limited.
  • For the most part, health service providers do not identify their Francophone patients and do not know how to help them access health professionals who offer services in French.
  • Language barriers have significant consequences for Francophone patients and for the health system.

How do language barriers impact patient safety and care quality?

Medical consultation times

Risk of errors in diagnosis

Use of diagnostic tests

Feelings of powerlessness and stress

Use of preventative care services

Treatment compliance

Understanding of condition/ diagnosis

Patient satisfaction

Our Objectives

Enhancing Access to French Language Health Services and Supporting Better Patient Outcomes for Francophones

Collaborating
with health planners

Francophone patient
perspective is included

Engaging the
Francophone
community

Patient-centered care for Francophones

French language
service capacity is
identified to provide
better connected care

Supporting health service
providers in building and
sustaining French services

Sustainable
solutions tailored to
community needs

2020-2021
BY THE NUMBERS...

10 YEARS

We celebrated 10 years in the service of healthier Francophone communities

We hosted our
FIRST VIRTUAL AGM

We attended AGMs for

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

Active participant at 10 community coordination tables

Combined these tables met 30 times to bring together diverse organizations to discuss local issues

We are an active partner in 10 OHTs (approved and in development) across our catchment area and have met with an additional 5 OHTs to discuss French language services.

Provided information to support 4 additional OHTs as they completed the application process

VIRTUAL ACTIVE OFFER WORKSHOPS

held for providers located in Simcoe County, Durham Region and York Region

Collaborated with Ontario Health Central region and Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital to create Active Offer training module for staff

Collaborating with 4 long-term care

providers approved to build new beds prioritized for Francophones

80-100 calls per week

Since launching in January 2021, the French language COVID information line at TAIBU CHC has received an average of 50 calls per week

Helped 222 Francophone patients

The bilingual health system navigator at CHIGAMIK CHC helped 222 Francophone patients navigate through services.

Twitter impressions


Video views

Collaborated with CMHA Durham to offer one of Ontario’s first virtual Mental Health First Aid workshop in French

Registration was full within 2 days and 9 participants received certification

Last year, the French speaking nurse practitioner at TAIBU CHC has

registered clients
Including 82 new Francophone clients registered this year
nearly 1,000 Francophones

participated in health promotion activities held at TAIBU CHC

+
Franco- phones

More than 2,600 Francophones took part in health promotion activities offered by Black Creek CHC

client visits

TNSS conducted 744 client visits and received 14 new referrals to French language programming

French workshops and outreach activities

were facilitated by the outreach worker at CMHA Durham with nearly

Francophone participants

the FLS Coordinator at the Alzheimer Society of Durham Region held

Group Sessions for
Francophone participants

The Adult Day Program run by Centres d’Accueil Héritage offered

socially distant in-person activities
virtual activities

COMMITTED TO OUR COMMUNITIES

The COVID-19 pandemic reinforced the importance of providing easily accessible, clear and accurate information to the communities we serve. Throughout the pandemic we have worked to support our community and health system partners in promoting and broadly distributing French language resources and programs.

For the Francophone communities we serve, the increased reliance on virtual connections throughout the pandemic enabled the creation of new partnership opportunities across our catchment area. Virtual French language health promotion activities and webinars were available to Francophones across our territory and the province.

SUPPORTING OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS

In the earliest days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Entité 4 supported our francophone community partners as well as our health system partners.

I CHOOSE PRIMARY CARE IN FRENCH BECAUSE...

In the more than one year since the government enacted a Declaration of Emergency because of the COVID-19 pandemic, a radical shift occurred in how many Ontarians access primary care services. What has not changed is the vital role of primary care as the entry point of the health system.

In partnership with TAIBU Community Health Centre, the Centre francophone du Grand Toronto and Chigamik Community Health Centre, we launched a campaign to ensure the Francophone communities we serve know that seeking care in French is an option and know where to turn for primary care services in French.

CARING FOR OUR MOST VULNERABLE

Placing Francophone patients at the centre of their care

10 Years Together

Entité 4 submits a request for full designation

PARTNERSHIP FOR ACTION

Despite the numerous challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Entité 4 and our health system partners continued to work together to increase capacity to offer French language services and deliver real improvements for Francophone patients and their caregivers.

Ontario Health Teams: Reimagining health care

Connect-Coordinate-Champion French language services

Expanding virtual care

Strengthening and sustaining French language services

Primary Care

Mental Health

Home and community care

Language Matters IN Long-term care

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 2020-2021

The Statement of Operations on the right is an excerpt from Entité 4's 2020-2021 audited Financial Statements. A copy of these financial statements in their entirety, as well as the opinion letter prepared by Marcil Lavallée for fiscal year 2020-2021, are available upon request.

Yves Lévesque

Chairman of the Board

Jean Bouchard

Treasurer

VIEW STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS

Message from the Board Chair and Executive Director

A year unlike any other

For Entité 4, the pandemic brought into focus what we already knew – increasing access to French language health services is crucial for the well-being of the communities we serve. The last 12 months underscored the importance of being flexible yet focused. The need to address immediate concerns while remaining committed to long-term goals.

What began as a two-week shutdown, following the declaration of a provincial emergency on March 17, 2020, forced many of us to fundamentally shift how we worked. In the early days of the pandemic, with information constantly shifting as medical understanding grew, Entité 4 stepped up to address the lack of reliable information in French.

But even as we worked to address new challenges, we remained committed to delivering sustainable solutions to improve access to care for Francophone patients and their caregivers.

With the help of our partners, and despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, the Alzheimer Society of Durham Region was identified as a provider of French language services and TAIBU Community Health Centre achieved partial designation under the French Language Services Act. The commitment shown by these organizations to better serve their Francophone clients is both remarkable and worth celebrating.

While the pandemic shifted the primary focus of the health system, progress towards system transformation continued. Entité 4 supported four additional OHTs located within our catchment area as they completed the provincial application process. We proactively developed information for OHTs to inform future discussions surrounding the provision of Home and Community Care Services.

Although it was a difficult year for many, the pandemic clearly demonstrated the interconnection between health care and community-based services and the importance of working together to address community needs. Maintaining existing and building new partnerships will play a critical role as we work to address the needs of Ontario’s Francophone communities.

With the end of the pandemic in sight, we must remain prepared to meet the new opportunities and challenges ahead. Perhaps the greatest lesson of the last year has been that although plans may change, our goal remains constant. We remain committed to our communities.

To help ensure Francophone communities have access to safe and reliable information, Entité 4 compiled a listing of French language COVID-19 related resources and support programs on our website.

We worked with health system partners to increase access to French language COVID-19 related information. In April 2020, with the support of Entité 4, the East York North Durham OHT launched a bilingual website to coordinate local supports for vulnerable and isolated individuals.

For frontline health care workers, Entité 4 worked with Ontario Shores to promote their French language capacity as part of the health care workers assist program. The program provides rapid access to services for all health care workers to provide skills that enhance resilience and reduce symptom burden.

Long-term care residents are among the most vulnerable members of our society. A vulnerability which is further amplified among Ontario’s Francophone population as the ability to speak a second language often deteriorates with age. Francophone seniors and their families are often faced with a difficult choice when seeking long-term care services: selecting a residence that can meet linguistic and cultural needs or one that is close to home.

Entité 4 supported the development of a submission to Ontario’s Long-Term Care COVID-19 Commission led by l’Assemblée de la francophonie de l’Ontario and the Fédération des aînés et de retraités francophones de l’Ontario. The December 17, 2020 presentation to the Commission and subsequent submission brought together insights and information from a range of French language organizations and institutions with ties to the long-term care sector to ensure the Commission understood the impact of the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic on Francophone long-term care residents and their families.

In February 2021, Entité 4 launched a project to enable the meaningful engagement of Francophone patients, families and caregivers as advisors to Ontario Health Teams. The project aims to develop resources to assist our health system partners and will also create tools to connect, empower and support Francophone patients, caregivers and volunteers taking on patient advisory roles.

As a result of the ongoing pandemic, Entité 4 got creative to celebrate its 10 years of improving access to French language health services.

Entité 4 reached out to francophone communities, supporters and health service partners to ask them to share how we are working together to build access to French language service. Sixteen of our partners, including the Minister of Francophone Affairs and the Regional Transitional Lead for Ontario Health (Central), provided a short video clip highlighting a project or initiative we undertook together. Combined the videos were viewed 2 945 times and received more than 20 000 Twitter impressions.

After ten years of dedicated service to increasing access to French language health services, Entité 4 has submitted a request for designation under the French Language Services Act.

Entité 4 continued to provide current and future OHTs with targeted information and tips on integrating French language services into care delivery.

Entité 4 worked with Rapid-Improvement Support and Exchange (RISE) and the Regroupement des entités de planification des services de santé en français to develop RISE brief #25 showcasing how the FLHPEs can support OHTs in building French language services. RISE is part of the Ministry of Health’s Central Program of Supports for OHTs.

The Working Group on System Navigation and Care Coordination for Francophones in the GTA, co-chaired by the Centre francophone du Grand Toronto and Entité 4, brings together health service providers, organizations and community members to improve navigation and coordination of French language services within and across Ontario Health Teams located in Toronto, Durham, York, Peel and Halton.

The Working Group is actively partnering with five approved Ontario Health Teams to develop a Hub and Spoke model for French language health services that leverages existing models of service delivery for seniors and those in need of mental health and addiction supports.

Entité 4 continued its collaboration with Ontario Health - OTN in their efforts to update and expand the number of individual health service practitioners registered with OTN to provide virtual patient care or educational workshops in French.

For the 2020-2021 fiscal year, Entité 4 collaborated with Ontario Health Central Region, Entité 3 and Ontario Health-OTN to conduct a survey aimed at mapping available virtual French language services across Ontario Health Central Region and soliciting HSP feedback of their comfort in utilizing virtual care.

Over the last year, Entité 4 collaborated closely with TAIBU Community Health Centre (CHC), the Ministry of Francophone Affairs, the Ministry of Health, the Central East LHIN and Ontario Health (East) to support the partial designation of TAIBU CHC for French language primary care and health promotion services.

With this designation, TAIBU CHC becomes the first health service provider to obtain a partial designation within the Central East region.

“By providing quality front-line services in French, TAIBU Community Health Centre offers crucial support to French-speaking visible minorities living in a dual minority context. The team at TAIBU is making a significant contribution to improving their quality of life, as well as that of their families and communities.”

Caroline Mulroney, Minister of Francophone Affairs

In recognition of the significant impact the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is having on the mental health of Canadians, Entité 4 partnered with Canadian Mental Health Association Durham to provide virtual Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training for free to Francophones. Traditionally held in-person, Mental Health First Aid Training offers individuals the tools they need to help a friend, loved one or colleague who may be struggling until appropriate support is found.

Following a recommendation by Entité 4, the Central East Local Health Integration Network (LHIN), identified the Alzheimer Society of Durham Region (ASDR) as a French language services provider. This achievement highlights the ongoing commitment of the ASDR to support the more than 13,300 Francophones living throughout Durham Region.

Consultations with our Francophone communities have demonstrated a need for services for seniors. Thanks to our partnership with ASDR, we are helping to build critical services for Francophone seniors in Durham region.

As the Government of Ontario works towards its commitment to build 15,000 new long-term care beds and redevelop 15,000 existing beds, Entité 4 launched a campaign to raise awareness of the need to prioritize beds for Francophones within its catchment area.

Entité 4 worked with four providers across our catchment area to include beds prioritized for Francophones as part of their applications. Projects for Carefirst Seniors & Community Services Association, IOOF Seniors Homes Inc., Grove Park Home and Victoria Village Manor were all approved for funding by the Ministry of Long-Term Care.

Entité 4 looks forward to supporting these providers as they continue to build their capacity to offer French language services.

STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND CHANGES
IN NET ASSETS
For the year ended March 31, 2021 		2021 2020
Revenue
LHIN contribution 654,064 654,051
Deferred contributions related to capital assets (1,126) -
Amortization of deferred contributions related to capital assets 2,766 3,982
TOTAL 655,704 658,033
Expenses
Salaries, benefits and contractual agreements 484,917 509,761
Consultants and professional fees 81,097 32,611
Rent 39,785 38,733
Advertising and promotion 11,311 5,435
Computer services 9,133 11,236
Telecommunications 8,636 9,225
Office expenses 5,251 4,437
Conferences and training 4,715 3,489
Insurance 4,646 4,347
Office supplies 3,167 8,979
Travel expenses 22 25,655
Interest and service charges 258 143
Interest and service charges 2,766 3,982
TOTAL 655,704 658,033
Excess of revenues over expenses - -
NET ASSETS, BEGINNING OF YEAR - -
NET ASSETS, END OF YEAR - -