Language interpretation service, Voyce, to power Closing the Gap Healthcare, providing equitable healthcare to patients across Canada

TORONTO, Sept. 1, 2021 /CNW/ - Today, Voyce is pleased to announce it will support and power Closing the Gap healthcare, a community based healthcare service provider in Ontario and Nova Scotia that empowers individuals to live their best lives. Voyce is a virtual on-demand language interpretation service that delivers immediate, seamless, and secure access to live, professional interpreters.

The partnership between Voyce and Closing the Gap (CTG) enables healthcare access for underserved demographics in Canadian healthcare and provides further options for communication between care providers and patients. Voyce will support Closing the Gap with professional medical interpreters available on demand, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, making healthcare more patient-focused and transformative. Closing the Gap originally piloted the project in Toronto and is now pleased to offer the service to its clients across Ontario and Nova Scotia.

"Canada is one of the most diverse countries in the world. We respect the incredible diversity of people here and realize that not all people are able to speak English or French fluently. Voyce is a critical tool to ensure these people are still able to get the care they need," said Voyce CEO Andrew Royce. "Health equity can be actualized through providers' use of the best tools available. Voyce ensures conversations can be started, consent can take place, and the little nuances that are so central to a patient experience are recognized, not ignored."

According to the 2016 census, more than 20% of people living in Canada speak a primary language other than English or French. Voyce technology makes healthcare more equitable and accessible by empowering patients to access care in their preferred language.

"Closing the Gap Healthcare is excited to add Voyce as a tool for our front-line providers to enhance communication where language may be a potential barrier," said Closing the Gap CEO Leighton McDonald. "One of our strategic priorities is to ensure we are consistently delivering Care that Matters and the Voyce Platform will assist our team in achieving this objective."

CTG's core belief is that health care systems can always function better for those who depend on them. That's why, since its creation, the organization has embraced a culture of innovation and a focus on continuous quality improvement to enhance client care, improve health system outcomes and become an employer of choice in the home care sector.

CTG provides services in your home, clinics or at the workplace with Personal Support Workers, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy, and Nursing. Now, these services will be enhanced by the addition of Voyce interpretation services which allows everyone to access healthcare in their own language, removing barriers to receiving healthcare services.

Voyce believes that when patients are provided with the right information, they become better informed, more empowered and more engaged in their own care - all of which leads to a better patient experience and a more efficient healthcare system.  Over 750 ClosingTheGap providers have access to the Voyce app in more than 235 languages including American Sign Language. The most requested languages are Armenian, Arabic, Chinese Cantonese, Chinese Mandarin, Italian, Korean, Vietnamese, and Hakka, a dialect of Chinese.

ABOUT VOYCE
Voyce is a technology driven company deeply committed to helping people in need facing language barriers, enabling them to easily and quickly communicate and get help. Voyce professional, qualified language interpreters provide interpretation across a variety of technology and telehealth platforms in 235+ languages and dialects, including American Sign Language. Across Canada, the U.K., the U.S. and globally, Voyce supports thousands of sessions a day providing language assistance to those in need.

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