The Secretary for Linguistic Policy of the Government of Catalonia, F. Xavier Vila, is attending the NPLD-Coppieters Campus 2023 conference in Espoo (Helsinki) on 28 and 29 September. This meeting of the NPLD (European Network to Promote Linguistic Diversity) in Finland is titled Managing languages in the field of Health & Social Care in Multilingual Communities. Vila will be accompanied by the government delegate to the Nordic countries, Montse Vila. Around fifteen experts from different countries will be taking part in this fourth edition of the biennial congress.

The meeting also forms part of the Government of Catalonia’s international efforts to advocate for the official status of Catalan in the European Union. For weeks now, the executive has been in contact with the governments of the member states, European institutions, and various entities. After the decision of the General Affairs Council to postpone the decision, a new round of contacts has been initiated at all levels to offer the necessary resources and information and to help address the doubts and reservations expressed by certain states. In this regard, the Secretary for Linguistic Policy was interviewed by Hufvudstadsbladet (HBL), the largest Swedish-language daily newspaper in Finland, based in the capital, Helsinki.

The importance of languages in the field of health and social care

The NPLD-Coppieters Campus 2023 conference presents cases of language management in the field of health and social care in multilingual communities. The seminars address how to ensure that speakers of the languages of a given community have access to health services in their language, especially if it is a minority or minoritised language. Speaking in a patient’s language also means helping the patient’s family to better understand the diagnosis and the treatment options available. Without professional linguistic support, patients are less likely to receive the level of care they need and misunderstandings can have disastrous effects on the effectiveness of the patient’s treatment.

The European Network to Promote Linguistic Diversity (NPLD) was created in 2007 to influence the European Union’s language policies regarding the recognition of regional and minority languages and the management of linguistic diversity in the context of Europe. Catalonia became a full member in 2009.