Photo essay: Diversity at Capital Health

Mohamed Yaffa is Capital Health's diversity coordinator. Yaffa knows that creating an organization that values and embraces diversity is not a one-person job. He works with individuals and departments to increase knowledge and understanding of diversity, health inequity and the skills and resources needed to create a culturally competent organization. Capital Health offers cultural competency education sessions to staff and physicians with the aim of integrating cultural competence into our everyday work.

In 2011, Capital Health developed a diversity strategy  for 2011 to 2015. The plan outlines actions to help Capital Health address health inequities.

(Photos by Anastasia Knyazeva)

Susan Mogae (far left), diversity co-ordinator for Public Health, helped co-ordinate a Multicultural Fair that provides newcomers to Canada and service providers an opportunity to share information and learn about different resources supporting the health of Nova Scotians. To encourage interaction, volunteer interpreters trained by the Immigrant Settlement and Integration Service interpretation program were on hand to provide simultaneous interpretation in several languages.

Capital Health's staff and patients come from all different faiths and hold different spiritual and religious beliefs. Capital Health is in the process of transforming what were traditionally Christian chapels to sacred spaces that are welcoming to people of all faiths and spiritual traditions. Sacred spaces are located at the Halifax Infirmary and VG sites of the QEII Health Sciences Centre, The Nova Scotia Hospital and Dartmouth General Hospital. The Sacred Spaces committee is working to create Sacred Spaces at other Capital Health facilities as well.

From left to right, Sherida Flemming, Healthy Workplace, Mohamed Yaffa, Diversity, and Margaret Angus, Marketing and Communications, met with Troy Nauffts from the Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians, and his dog Mo. The group discussed steps Capital Health can take to help people who are blind or visually impaired more easily access our services and navigate our facilities.

Dr. Mark Klimek (far left) is a clinical assistant working in cardiology at the QEII Health Sciences Centre. He examines and assesses patients and recommends treatment in co-operation with  the staff cardiologist or senior resident.

Each year, Capital Health welcomes international medical graduates who have received their medical school or residency training outside of Canada. International medical graduates work as clinical assistants and are sponsored and mentored by licensed physicians. Capital Health employs 17 clinical assistants who are considered valuable members of the multidisciplinary health team.