On Tuesday, August 6, on "Care Day" at the National Eisteddfod, the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and Social Care Wales will come together to discuss the Welsh language in the health and care sector.
The event will be an opportunity to hear about the work of both organisations in developing Welsh medium provision and bilingual workforces in the sector to give the people of Wales the best care from cradle to grave.
As part of the event there will be an opportunity to hear real-life experiences from employees and service users about the importance of the Welsh language in the health and care service, from childcare and midwifery, to palliative care.
On the panel Mari Emlyn will share her difficult memories, and her appreciation for the invaluable Welsh service her late father received when he was suffering from a terminal condition that had affected his nervous system. She said:
"Welsh was dad's first language, it was the language he thought in and so seeing him struggle to communicate English with the staff created a lot of extra pain for him during his final days.
"I can't convey how much difference it made when he was hearing Welsh. We were extremely fortunate that our GP who explained the end of life process to him, learnt the language. Although he wasn't fully fluent, he was able to hold a conversation and he made dad relax which meant the world.
Mari added,
"There needs to be sensitivity and understanding around the language in the sector.
"Even a few words in Welsh makes an invaluable difference to the individual. Dad passed away in 2019, but as a proud Welshman we treasure the fact that he was allowed to speak Welsh until the end.”
Gwenllian Owen, Senior Higher Education Manager at Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol said,
"It is vital that suitable Welsh language provision and support is available to train the next generation of health and care workers to be confident in using their Welsh in the workplace. The Coleg has been working with providers and partners across the post-compulsory sector to plan, drive and develop these opportunities for over 10 years and there has been tremendous growth in provision during this time."
The Coleg encourages all learners to study a portion of their course in Welsh in these priority sectors and has developed resources to support the learners and staff who teach them including Prentis-Iaith and the More than just words: Communication in Health and Care resource
The Coleg’s work continues, and in line with the Welsh Government's More than just words plan, appropriate steps are being taken to ensure bilingual provision is offered on all health and social care courses in Wales.
Social Care Wales provides national leadership and expertise in social care and early years and leads on the regulation and development of the social care workforce, service improvements, and data and research to improve care.
Sandie Grieve, Lead Officer for Sector Development and Engagement for Social Care Wales, said:
"On 'Care Day' at this year's Eisteddfod, we are looking forward to the discussion panel that will raise awareness and understanding of the language, and its importance to people receiving care and support."
The event, 'Health, care and the Welsh language' will take place in the Pabell y Cymdeithasau at the National Eisteddfod, Tuesday, August 6 at 3pm. Joining Mari Emlyn, Gwenllian Owen, and Sandie Grieve at the event will be Myfanwy Harman, Manager of Cylch Meithrin at Y Gurnos, Sharon Jones, Clinical Facilitator in Midwifery, and others.