By Reception House Waterloo Region (RHWR)
Quick Facts:
Population of interest
Rohingya refugee families supported by RHWR with a focus on strengthening continuity of care and community supports throughout their settlement journey.
Location
Waterloo Region, Ontario, home to the largest Rohingya community in Canada, estimated by the Rohingya Centre of Canada to represent approximately 70% of the country's Rohingya population.
The need
RHWR delivers resettlement services to Rohingya refugees. Post-exit evaluation found that while Rohingya clients successfully transitioned from intensive case management with greater confidence, independence and sense of belonging, many continued to rely on a small network of organizations. Language, interpretation, and system navigation barriers persisted, particularly within mainstream systems such as healthcare, employment, and government services. These findings highlighted the need for stronger partnerships with organizations that continue supporting families beyond formal settlement services.
About the Intervention
RHWR has developed a partnership approach that moves beyond traditional referral relationships toward shared responsibility for addressing identified barriers. Partnerships are built in response to needs identified through client feedback, evaluation, frontline experience and community knowledge. Settlement expertise is combined with specialized health and community expertise to adapt how services are accessed and delivered.
What's promising
Several partnerships demonstrate the shared responsibility approach for addressing the barriers Rohingya refugees face. Partnerships entail the following:
RHWR works with specialized primary care clinics experienced in refugee health that can provide longer, comprehensive assessments, often averaging 3 hours per family, to capture medical history and identify health needs that may require further follow-up or specialized care.
RHWR, primary care and KidsAbility also co-developed a Community Intake Model where a social worker from KidsAbility joins the initial health intake, allowing families to share their history once, reducing information gaps between disciplines, and clarifying roles from the start.
Through a partnership with Region of Waterloo Public Health, the Neighborhood Nursing Team provides on-site medical support in temporary accommodation, triaging non-urgent concerns, identifying complex cases, and connecting clients to services such as vaccine clinics, dental care, and tuberculosis screening.
A designated Occupational Therapist through Ontario Health at Home and CBI Health manages RHWR referrals, with monthly case reviews and pre-arrival planning helping to reduce wait times for assessments and equipment.
RHWR also works with pharmacists and primary care providers to simplify medication routines for clients managing multiple prescriptions. This approach also recognizes the important role of community-led organizations in long-term integration.
As Rohingya families continue to rely on the Rohingya Centre after exiting case management, Reception House Waterloo Region works alongside the Rohingya Centre to expand its capacity and strengthen the supports available to families throughout their long-term integration. This partnership was formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding and is reciprocal, the Centre sharing cultural knowledge, insight into refugee experiences, and emerging community trends that help RHWR and other providers anticipate and respond to changing needs.
Key takeaways
Successful partnerships start with understanding each other, responding to real client needs, and sharing responsibility for finding solutions.
Outcomes
Partnerships have reduced wait times, faster access to equipment, a more coordinated and trauma-informed intake pathway, and improved access to Public Health services.
About the organization: Reception House Waterloo Region has supported refugees in Waterloo Region since 1987 and has worked alongside Rohingya families since their first arrival to the region in 2007.