“What brings you here today?” is a familiar question in a health clinic in Canada, but it may not be one that comes immediately to the mind of an internationally educated health professional. The way health professionals communicate with patients in their cultures can sound overly direct in Canadian clinics. “Why are you here?” would be typically asked to patients in settings such as the Ukraine and Egypt. A stepping stone that supports the understanding of linguistic appropriacy and the Canadian health care context is offered at the Languages Institute of Mount Royal University, Calgary. The Communication Skills for Health Professionals (CSHP) project teaches language and communication...
