International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health | Interview with the Author—Dr. Neil Arya
Name: Dr. Neil Arya
Affiliations: 1 Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 3L8, Canada; 2 School of Public Health Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada; 3 Kitchener-Waterloo Centre for Family Medicine Refugee Health Clinic, Kitchener, ON N2G 1C5, Canada
“Medical Interpreting Services for Refugees in Canada: Current State of Practice and Considerations in Promoting this Essential Human Right for All”
by Akshaya Neil Arya, Ilene Hyman, Tim Holland, Carolyn Beukeboom, Catherine E. Tong, Rachel Talavlikar and Grace Eagan
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2024, 21(5), 588; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph21050588
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/21/5/588
The following is an interview with Dr. Neil Arya:
1. Congratulations on your recently published paper! Could you please briefly introduce yourself and your current research to our readers?
I’m Neil Arya. I’ve been a family doctor for over 30 years and started a refugee health clinic back in 2008 in Kitchener–Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. I’m also academically affiliated with four universities. Currently, I’m a fellow at the International Migration Research Centre and the Balsillie School for International Affairs, an adjunct in Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo, and I hold clinical and academic roles in family medicine at McMaster University. I’ve also served as the Director of the Global Health Office at Western University and Scholar-in-Residence at Wilfrid Laurier University. My work focuses on underserved populations and equity, particularly for people experiencing homelessness and refugees.
2. How did your team come together for this research?
The project started through the Canadian Refugee Health Network, a group of healthcare providers across the country. We recognized that the lack of access to paid professional interpretation was a nationwide issue, important to provide quality care. We assembled a team that included equity researchers and experts in qualitative research and interpretation. Each member brought unique expertise, contributing to a comprehensive understanding of the problem.
3. What inspired you to pursue this field of research?
It began with a pressing need—patients in clinics, hospitals, and public health settings weren’t receiving proper medical interpretation. We were seeing clinicians using family members, untrained staff, unvetted machine translation and charades to communicate life and death issues. This often led to miscommunication, medical errors, or even violations of informed consent. Recognizing the urgency of the issue, we decided to investigate its root causes and advocate for equitable access.
4. What do you hope readers take away from your paper?
Our main message is that medical interpretation should be a right, not a privilege. We highlighted unequal access across provinces, cities, and medical disciplines, and we see this disparity as a violation of basic rights. Interpretation is essential to ensuring quality care, and it should be available to all.
5. How do you see this issue evolving in the next decade?
I’m optimistic. Society has shown the ability to pivot on significant issues, like smoking bans and disability rights. I hope that equitable access to medical interpretation will similarly be recognized as a no-brainer, supported by both human rights arguments and cost-effectiveness evidence.
6. What was your impression of our journal and the editorial process?
I had actually been a co-author of papers previously published in the journal as colleagues had chosen it, but now as principal author I had a positive experience overall, particularly with peer review quality. There were some challenges related to the ethics requirements, but I appreciated the commitment to maintaining high standards.
We would like to express our gratitude to Dr. Neil Arya and his research group for choosing the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH, ISSN: 1660-4601) as the platform to publish their research. Submissions and input related to the area of health promotion and health presentation are welcomed by our journal.