3rd Annual Quebec Pregnancy Care Conference: Learning to Better Care for Our Communities

On August 21st, people involved in Christian pregnancy support from across Quebec gathered in Lennoxville for the third annual Quebec Pregnancy Care Conference. This year’s theme, “Operating with Excellence: Caring well for our community” invited participants to reflect on what it means to continually grow in the way we serve.

Seven independent organizations from different regions of Quebec participated: Options Pregnancy Centre Lennoxville, Centre Options Châteauguay, Abriter, Aide Grossesse Québec, Options Grossesse de Québec, REI Foundation and Rachel’s Vineyard Quebec.

Each organization serves its own community in its own way, with different programs, and areas of expertise. The conference was not about creating one model of pregnancy support. Instead, it created a space to learn from one another, exchange experiences and bring new knowledge back to our individual communities.

Excellence Starts with Listening

One theme continued to surface throughout the day: excellent care begins with listening.

Every person who walks through our doors has a unique story, culture, background, needs and way of communicating. Before we can understand what support may be helpful, we need to take the time to understand the person in front of us.

This was at the heart of the conference’s keynote presentation, Caring Effectively for Our Clients Across Cultures, presented by Francine Essono, Ph.D., an expert in intercultural diversity management and social inclusion.

Her presentation explored how culture can influence communication, expectations, relationships and even our differing perceptions of something as simple as the concept of time.

For example, what may be interpreted in one culture as a lack of commitment or respect may have an entirely different meaning in another. 

The takeaway was valuable: excellence across cultures requires us to look beyond our assumptions and seek to understand before we interpret.

Providing excellent care requires curiosity, humility and a willingness to adapt. It means recognizing that the person in front of us may experience the world differently than we do, and choosing to understand before we respond.

Ultimately, we want to understand better so that we can support better.

Organizations are stronger when they work together. 

Another important realization that came out of our time together was that no organization can meet every need on its own. Part of caring well for our individual communities is knowing what we can offer and recognizing when another organization, professional or community partner may be better equipped to help.

Strong relationships with other organizations in our communities help us better understand the resources available around us, learn from different areas of expertise and connect people with support beyond what we can provide ourselves.

Working together helps ensure that we are building a community where people do not have to navigate difficult circumstances alone.

It takes a village.

Continuing to Learn

The third annual Quebec Pregnancy Care Conference was not about asking every organization to operate in the same way.

It was about creating an opportunity for these seven organizations to gather around the same table and  share what they have learned and then return to their own communities with valuable new ideas and a renewed commitment to serve with excellence.

For us at Options, that means continuing to listen, continuing to ask questions, continuing to learn from others and continuing to foster new relationships within our community.

And most of all, it means continually asking ourselves: How can we better care for the people and communities we serve?

We are grateful for the opportunity to learn alongside others who share that same desire.