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Frequently Asked Questions

Demographic Statistics
Where can I find more background information about specific CALD communities?
Health Statistics
Services and Multicultural Organisations
Translations
Language Services
Communications and Marketing Campaigns
Multicultural Health Communication Website Information
Cultural Competence in the health sector

Demographic Statistics

How many people speak a language other than English at home?

1,197,071 people or 18.9% of the NSW population speak a language other than English at home. There were 1,092,219 people who spoke a language other than English in the 1996 Census. This represents an additional 104,852 or 9.6% increase in population that speak a language other than English at home. (ABS Census 2001)

Which Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) groups have the lowest English language proficiency (ELP) in NSW?

The five highest ranking Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) population groups in NSW with low ELP (in order of priority and weighted by size of population and % with Low ELP) is: Vietnamese, Khmer, Korean, Chinese, and Lao. (2001 ABS Census data)

What are the top 10 most common languages other than English spoken in NSW?

The top 10 languages other than English spoken in NSW are: Arabic, Chinese, Italian, Greek, Vietnamese, Spanish, Tagalog (Filipino), Macedonian, Korean and Hindi. (ABS Census 2001)

What percentage of people in NSW was born overseas?

The percentage of people born overseas from non-English speaking countries was 1,020,507 or 16.1% of the NSW population (ABS Census 2001)

What percentage of people in NSW has low English proficiency?

There are 3.56% of the NSW population that speak English not well or not all (ABS Census 2001)

Which are the largest multicultural communities in NSW?

The five highest ranking CALD population groups in NSW by language spoken at home are: Arabic, Cantonese, Greek, Italian and Vietnamese speaking communities (in order of priority) (2001 ABS Census data)

The top five countries of birth in NSW (non-English speaking country) are: China, Vietnam, Italy, Lebanon and the Philippines (2001 ABS Census data)

Which CALD communities have settled in NSW recently?

In 2003-04, the total number of settlers was 40,561. The top ten source countries of new settler arrivals for New South Wales (in order of size) were: the PRC (12.4 per cent), the United Kingdom (11.1 per cent), New Zealand (10.1 per cent), India (9.0 per cent) the Philippines (4.5 per cent). South Africa, Sudan, Indonesia, Iraq and Lebanon. This compares closely with the top source countries for Australia: the United Kingdom, New Zealand, the PRC, India and South Africa. (Population Flows: Immigration Aspects 2003-04 Edition, DIMIA)

Resident populations born in South Africa, India, China, Korea, New Zealand, and Fiji all grew by 20% or more between 1996 and 2001, as did populations speaking Hindi, Indonesian, Korean, Chinese, Serbian and Vietnamese languages at home. (Report of the NSW Chief Health Officer 2004)

The distribution of females and males across most source countries was fairly evenly balanced. Some exceptions included Thailand (77.8 per cent female), Japan (67.2 per cent female) and Vietnam (64.9 per cent female). (Population Flows: Immigration Aspects 2003-04 Edition, DIMIA)

What is a 'Small and Emerging Community'?

It has been found to be more useful to look at the characteristics of small and emerging communities rather than attempt to define them. By describing small and emerging communities service providers are better able to think broadly about these communities whereas defining them inevitably leads to exclusion, that is a community either fits or does not fit a particular definition. (Echevarria, April 2002)

The following are some general characteristics of small and emerging communities with most communities having some, but not all of these characteristics:

• Communities are small in number (ranging from approximately 100 - or even less - up to approximately 8,000);
• Members of these communities are geographically dispersed throughout Sydney and are often highly mobile;
• Community members are generally newly arrived (within the last five to ten years) and often have arrived under the Refugee and Humanitarian Program;
• Members have little or no familiarity with Australian welfare systems or services;

There is a lack of sustainable community structures, or the community is in the early stages of developing such structures - which is often due to the proportion of new arrivals who are at a 'survival level' creating difficulties in being involved in community development activities;
• The composition of the community is dispersed (religious, political, ethnic, educational level) which appears more evident due to the size of the community than within larger communities (which may be equally diverse);
• Community members lack extended family members (and therefore support) and community elders/religious leaders;
• The focus of the organisations may be cultural, religious or political with a lower priority on settlement and welfare issues, particularly in the early stages of the communities settlement;
• Communities may have a culture distant from basic Anglo-Australian norms

(Anglicare, Working with small and emerging communities, July 2004)

What are the small and emerging communities in NSW (languages of limited diffusion) in NSW?

Based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics 1996 Census, people from the following countries make up small and emerging communities in Australia:

Afghanistan, Albania, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Colombia, Cook Islands, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Iraq, Kenya, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Sudan (HREOC, 1999)

Where can I find more background information about specific CALD communities?

Health Statistics

What is the health status of people from CALD communities in NSW?

Overseas-born people generally have good health. This reflects the 'healthy migrant effect', whereby people in good health are more likely to meet eligibility criteria, and to be willing and economically able to migrate. However, certain diseases and health risk factors are more prevalent among some country-of-birth groups. This reflects diverse social, economic, environmental, cultural, and genetic influences.

Compared with the Australian-born, people born in some overseas countries:

• Are more likely to have premature babies (mothers born in Fiji);
• Are less likely to have their first antenatal visit before 20 weeks gestation (mothers born in Lebanon, Korea, Fiji, New Zealand, Indonesia, and the Philippines);
• Have high rates of hospitalisation for diabetes or its complications (males and females born in Lebanon, Fiji, Italy, India, and Greece; females born in the Philippines; males born in South Africa);
• Have high rates of hospitalisation for coronary heart disease (Lebanon, Fiji, and India) and cardiac revascularisation procedures (Lebanon, Fiji, India, and Greece);
• Have high rates of lung cancer (males and females born in the United Kingdom; females born in New Zealand);
• Have high rates of tuberculosis (Vietnam, the Philippines, India, Indonesia, China, Hong Kong, Korea, Fiji, Malaysia, and the Former Yugoslavia)

(Report of the NSW Chief Health Officer 2004)

Services and Multicultural Organisations

Translations

Language Services

Where can I find an Interpreter in NSW?

If you are accessing a NSW Health service there are health care interpreter services available in the Area Health services. There contact numbers are available in the following publication: http://www.mhcs.health.nsw.gov.au/policiesandguidelines/supportinfo/pdf/booklet.pdf

Alternatively you may contact the Translating & Interpreting Service (TIS) on 131 450 or email tispromo@immi.gov.au
The Australian Government, through the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs, provides a Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) for people who do not speak English and for English speakers needing to communicate with them.
TIS is Australia's only national service, and is available to any person or organisation in Australia requiring interpreting services.
TIS is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and is accessible from anywhere in Australia for the cost of a local call.

Can I ask for an Interpreter in hospital?

Yes. According to the 'NSW Health Circular Standard Procedures for the Use of Health Care Interpreters' (94/10) all clients of non-English speaking background should be informed about the Health Care Interpreter Service (HCIS) and their ability to access a professional health care interpreter.

What language services are frequently used in health care settings?

The top 10 language services requested by NSW Health Care Interpreter Services for 2004 were: Chinese, Arabic, Italian, Spanish, Greek, Vietnamese, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian and Polish. (Languages for Pamphlet for Clients / Patients)

Communications and Marketing Campaigns

Are there services in NSW that offer help in developing campaigns /strategies to target culturally diverse communities?

Yes. Contact our Manager Communication and Social Marketing:
Michael Camit
Michael.Camit@sesiahs.health.nsw.gov.au

02 9816 0305

Where can I find information about how my service can improve communication (all services) to CALD communities?

The Victorian Government has developed a checklist guide for government agencies when formulating communication strategies aimed at specific categories of CALD Victorians. The guide is based on research amongst CALD communities in Victoria - therefore caution is needed if applying it to other states.
See: http://www.vic.gov.au/

Where can I find information about how I can improve my health communication to CALD communities?

See the Postgraduate Medical Council of NSW at:

http://www.diversityinhealth.com/regions/index.htm

Multicultural Health Communication Website Information

Can I reproduce resources/publications on the website?

Permission is required in order to reproduce any resources/publications on the website. Please contact the service for further information: mhcs@sesiahs.health.nsw.gov.au

Cultural Competence in the health sector