Montérégie Ouest

Sarah Rennie – LJI reporter

The board of directors and management at the Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux de la Montérégie-Ouest (CISSSMO) presented its final annual review during a public information session on November 27 in Vaudreuil.

The creation of Santé Québec, the province’s new public health agency that launched on December 1, effectively eliminated the regional health agency. As a result, the evening oscillated between cautious optimism and sentimentality as the CISSSMO’s deputy president and CEO Dominique Pilon spoke of the agency’s challenges, successes, and priorities for 2025.

Some of the highlights mentioned include improvements in access to care, such as the official inauguration of midwifery services in the region, which welcomed its first birth on March 25. At least five vaccination and screening centres became permanent points of service, to relieve overcrowding at CLSCs and hospitals and to help consolidate and optimize the use of space and human resources.

The hours for daytime medical services were extended to evenings and weekends. According to Pilon, this will benefit those who need the technical facilities of a hospital. “Before, they had to stay in bed at the hospital, taking a bed just for tests, examinations, or to receive ward care. What we have done is improve the order of services, allowing for much earlier discharges and better hospital fluidity,” he explained.

Healthcare workers are also performing virtual follow-ups with patients in their homes for issues such as hypertension, diabetes, and even lung disease. Nurses can see data in real time and from there, adjustments can be made to medication or treatment plans, which prevents visits to emergency rooms.

Pilon also highlighted how primary care access points (GAP) have allowed those without a family doctor to be seen. Local teams are processing between 110 and 230 requests per day, and 80 per cent of the requests are fulfilled within 36 hours.

Following a law that required health agencies to eliminate the hiring of placement agency workers, the CISSSMO launched a massive recruitment campaign that resulted in 560 hires. “At this time last year, we had over 1,000 employees working for us from the independent workforce,” said Pilon. “One year on, fewer than 175 people come from the independent workforce. As of April 1, we will no longer have any,” he added.

Priorities for 2025

The main priorities for the upcoming year include budget management. The CISSSMO posted a consolidated deficit of $106 million in 2023-2024; however, Pilon insists the budget will be balanced for 2025. “Two months ago, we had a projected deficit of $142 million. Today, two-months later, the forecasted deficit for Montérégie-Ouest is $98 million,” said Pilon.

In terms of budget recovery, Pilon acknowledged that independent labour was a significant factor. Last year, agency workers represented $52 million of the CISSSMO’s budget. This number is expected to fall to around $16 million for this year.

“An exceptional job has been done by all the teams, not only by the finance teams, but also by all the departments that have worked hard to reduce expenses within the organization,” he noted, while suggesting he is confident the organization will continue to reduce its spending without impacting patient care.

Human resources and recruitment will also be prioritized. According to Pilon, 250 of the CISSSMO’s recent hires were all from the independent workforce. He noted the organization has also launched an international recruitment office and will soon welcome 20 new nurses to the Hôpital Anna Laberge in Chateaugay.

Pilon also emphasized the importance being placed on human resources. He mentioned that during the most recent exams for nursing assistants and nurses (LPN), the 34 LPN candidates posted a 94 per cent pass rate, while all 73 nurses who took the exam achieved a passing grade.

“This is the culture we want to establish, of being able to support those who want to come and work for us,” said Pilon, who heralded the success rate as proof the nurses and LPNs were well prepared, with the supervision they needed to succeed.

He finished by noting the organization is looking ahead to several major infrastructure projects, including the future Vaudreuil-Soulanges hospital, the opening of the new Maison des Aînés alternative long-term care residence in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, and improvements to the Suroît and Anna Laberge hospitals.