PICTOMED

Our initial concern was the link between access to healthcare services and social integration of migrants. Language barriers are considered to be globally one of the main causes for lack of access to primary healthcare services. Our mission is therefore to develop globally applicable solutions for language based communication problems in the healthcare setting. Thereby patients with migration background and/or limited proficiency in the local language are enabled to get the same access to healthcare as well as a better standard of medical care. We hope to make a small contribution...to foster universal access to health, migrant empowerment, humanitarian relief, solidarity and to passionately advocate of inclusion and rights for migrant and refugee populations. We aim to to engage healthcare providers further in the dialogue, incite constructive discussions about interpreter use and encourage political processes and positions in favour of health equity and the refugee cause.

PICTOMED is a non-profit organisation, a support association based in Switzerland, committed to finding and promoting solutions to overcome language barriers in doctor-patient-communication. We are a Swiss medical doctor and a professional designer working on this project since 2017. We are both volunteers and founders of this NGO.

PICTOMED's Website-App will enable healthcare providers and patients who do not share a common language to communicate with ease, simply by pointing to pictures. We provide around 300 illustrations of medical symptoms. The application will be quick and easy to use, with the aim to guarantee maximal usability and effectiveness. PICTOMED is therefore an effective tool to ensure health equity and human rights of displaced populations.

Please visit www.pictomed.org for further informations.