nurses

International nurses arrive against a backdrop of racism 

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

Nelson Sergerie, LJI Journalist

GASPÉ – Over the weekend of February 15-16, twenty new international nurses arrived in the Gaspé Peninsula to lend a hand at the Gaspé Peninsula Integrated Health and Social Services Centre (CISSS), which is facing issues of a significant shortage of healthcare workers. 

Before practicing their trade, the nurses must complete a one-year refresher program at the Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles. 

This third cohort of international nurses is assigned to healthcare facilities in Gaspé and Maria. “With manpower needs everywhere, but more so in these two sectors. The accessibility of our modular accommodations facilitated the arrival and integration of these people are the factors that were taken into account,” says Jean-François Cassivi, Assistant to the Director of Human Resources at CISSS. 

The nurses come from Morocco, the Congo and Haiti. “It’s very diverse,” notes Mr. Cassivi. 

This cohort was recruited before the moratorium that no longer allows nurses to be recruited from certain African countries. 

About forty nurses were recruited in the first two cohorts. “The vast majority of people stayed with the CISSS de la Gaspésie. We’re very happy,” says Mr. Cassivi. 

These 60 or so caregivers have had a major impact on healthcare services offered in the Gaspé Peninsula. 

“These are resources that complement our work team. Since the student pool is not sufficient, we lack human resources at this level. It has become essential to seek this help,” explains the administrator. 

For the moment, there are no plans for a fourth cohort. “The work is being done with the Ministry of Immigration and Francisation. We are waiting for instructions for the next steps,” he says. 

On February 14, the daily newspaper Le Devoir reported cases of racism at the hospital involving some of these international nurses. 

“Without going into details, we have raised awareness. We are taking the situation seriously. We will have to intervene, have discussions with the people involved. For us, as an institution, racism in any form has a zero tolerance,” says Mr. Cassivi. 

He clarified that, while concerns have been raised, no concrete wrongdoing was found. “We did not have any clear evidence that would have led to reprimands. We do not want to remain on perceptions. We want to intervene so that there are no racist behaviours or actions,” says Mr. Cassivi. 

At the Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles, officials emphasize that such alleged incidents are rare 

The coordinating teacher at the CISSS has denounced the situation. “There were interventions that were made. The students also changed shifts. The situation has improved,” emphasized Éric Couillard, the coordinator of continuing education at the CEGEP, in an interview with CHNC. “The students have been very well received in the other internships in recent years. The staff is attentive,” he adds. 

International nurses arrive against a backdrop of racism  Read More »

Obstetrics in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts: A situation that could happen elsewhere in the Gaspé 

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

Nelson Sergerie, LJI Journalist

SAINTE-ANNE-DES-MONTS – A disagreement between the Gaspé Peninsula Integrated Health and Social Services Centre (CISSS) and two independent labour nurses has led to service disruptions and shortages in the obstetrics department of the Sainte-Anne-des-Monts hospital since December 22. 

Two experienced nurses, who requested anonymity for fear of backlash, had been working at the Sainte-Anne-des-Monts hospital for two years through their respective agencies. 

The CISSS provided $120 per night to cover the costs of their accommodation. The presence of the two nurses kept the obstetrics service running. However, one nurse renting an AirBnB-type home revealed that her accommodation fees had not been paid since September 5, without having been notified of the situation. 

The nurses had been staying at the same residence since December 2022. Their accommodations were cancelled and the CISSS wanted to relocate them to an apartment, one where they wouldn’t be permitted pets or their spouses to stay with them, and they’d be sharing an apartment, similar to mining sector workers. 

One nurse expressed dissatisfaction with the arrangement, stating that she did not want to live in a community “…like when I was in CEGEP.” 

Moreover, the CISSS adopted such a policy last fall in order to reduce costs, which reach nearly half a million dollars per month to house independent workers. 

“There is something other than the situation mentioned,” says Yannick Sauvé, the director of procurement and logistics for the Gaspé Peninsula CISSS, who remains cautious given the confidentiality of workers’ files. 

“We do not take any decisions lightly. In this case, following an administrative investigation, we decided not to go ahead with what they were asking. We will take legal action to recover the overpaid amounts,” says Mr. Sauvé. 

The internal investigation had shown irregularities, without revealing specific details since the dispute could ultimately end up in court. 

“Yes, accommodation is changing. These are specific cases. To act as we are, we had judged that there was a major problem. It is not related to the accommodation policy. It is really a specific case related to these people,” he says, adding that exceptional measures could have been applied given the situation in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts. Mr. Sauvé points out that full-time positions are open to join the team. 

“They chose to remain independent workers where the advantage is that we pay the entire rent. We have people who come to work here to cover all the costs. It’s a question of fairness,” says the manager. 

The Quebec government has granted a deadline until October 2026 to free the Gaspé network from independent workers. 

In addition to this particular situation in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts, the Gaspé Peninsula CISSS indicated that it was using 400,000 hours of work by independent workers to ensure continuity of care. 

A situation similar to that experienced in Haute-Gaspésie could arise in other establishments in the Gaspé Peninsula. 

“We are not here to put spokes in the wheels, but we have to think that it is $500,000 per month that we will save if we have our people full-time. $500,000 per month is care for the population. We do not do this lightly. We do it on a case-by-case basis because we do not want to cut off access to care,” says Mr. Sauvé. 

When questioned, Gaspé Member of the National Assembly Stéphane Sainte-Croix preferred not to comment on this specific case. 

However, he remains concerned about the eight service disruptions or interruptions in 2024. “I am very concerned. We are never reassured in front of our citizens during a service disruption. There is a particular situation for the repetition of service disruptions. We must question ourselves. We will try to understand the situation and address it to find a way out,” says Mr. Sainte-Croix. The obstetrics department in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts relies entirely on independent labour to remain operational, requiring six nurses to ensure optimal service. 

Obstetrics in Sainte-Anne-des-Monts: A situation that could happen elsewhere in the Gaspé  Read More »

Gaspé Peninsula CISSS must find $40.7M before March 31

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , ,

Nelson Sergerie, LJI Journalist

Integrated Health and Social Services Centres (CISSS) must find a way to recover a $40.7 million cost overrun in a budgetary effort requested by the Quebec government on a budget of $535 million. 

This represents 8% of its $535 million budget and must be achieved by March 31 which will be a major challenge, a goal that the Union of Nurses, Auxiliary Nurses and Respiratory Therapists of Eastern Quebec calls unrealistic. 

“That’s the target. As a manager and government employee, that’s the target. I have to implement the mechanisms to achieve it. Afterwards, I will be judged on the achievement of results. This is a big chunk to take on for the few months I’m given. The message is very clear: the budget must stop swelling. The idea is to respect the budgets we’re going to be given,” explains President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Martin Pelletier. 

The requested amount represents approximately 1.5 months of CISSS’ operating costs. 

In a situation where the costs of supplies, medications and the application of the latest collective agreements have a direct impact on the budget, the order looks set to be even more difficult for the future. 

“These are elements that add pressure to the system. Normally, these costs related to inflation are subsidized. This year, as such, it’s not. Not up to the cost increases. From there, it’s a pressure that follows us,” mentions Mr. Pelletier. 

Four main areas have been identified to achieve the objective: rigour and management rights over staff in order to recover everything that could be done and over supplies; a freeze to increase or develop services; optimizing operations and reviewing the service offering to see if it is adapted to needs. 

Considering the Gaspé Peninsula has one of the oldest populations in Quebec and given the distances to travel to receive care, the CISSS plans to highlight these unique challenges to the Quebec government. 

“Certainly, this must be taken into account. We have small teams in large territories that we must keep in place to ensure continuity of services. These are assets that we want to keep. On this, there are no major compromises. This is well understood by Santé-Québec. We will see if there are adjustments that will be granted,” hopes the President and CEO. 

Despite this budgetary reshuffle, Mr. Pelletier affirms that care for the population will not be affected. 

“There will be things that will be transformed. We look first at where we have room in the activities we do that do not affect services. When we get there, it will be a review that will take into account the needs of the population. A review that is necessary given the province’s ability to pay,” says Mr. Pelletier. 

The use of independent labour accounts for $25 to $30 million of the $40.7 million to be recovered. “This must be taken into account. It is not a simple formula to say that we stop using independent labour. The consequences are harmful. We use it because we have needs to fill teams, to maintain services. The withdrawal of independent labour would mean that we would have to close services,” he says. The CISSS must free itself from independent labour on October 18, 2026. 

“Our budget balance plan was initially over three years because it gave us time to recruit and transform things to be able to eliminate it as much as possible,” says Mr. Pelletier. 

In terms of infrastructure, projects to modernize care units are suspended for the moment. 

“We see ourselves having to endure obsolescence for longer in certain sectors. I’m thinking of the Youth Centre in Gaspé that was in the pipeline. It’s unfortunate to see that it will be on hold longer than expected. For the next year and a half, there will be a slowdown in this area,” he says. 

The union believes that it is unrealistic to compress the budget so quickly, citing as an example what will happen during the holiday season. 

“We are on the eve of a difficult period. The holiday season creates a lot of difficulties with replacements, a colossal force to keep services open 24/7. There is a lot of overtime and mandatory overtime. It is a period that costs a lot of money to provide service to the population. It is completely disconnected that Santé-Québec gives the CISSS and CIUSSS a goal of recovering significant amounts in three and a half months,” notes the union president, Pier-Luc Bujold. 

Senior management met with the union to inform it that no compensation reduction will affect staff directly, However, the union fears that management will apply new provisions of the new collective agreement to achieve financial goals. 

The coming years will not be rosy as Quebec must review its expenses following an $11 billion deficit. 

“The Santé-Québec megastructure will not be a measure to really save costs,” says Mr. Bujold, who invites the CISSS to review the use of independent labour. 

“There is still unjustified use (of independent labour) on our territory. For several months, we have been asking the CISSS de la Gaspésie to save money without affecting the members we represent,” says the union representative. 

Gaspé Peninsula CISSS must find $40.7M before March 31 Read More »

Scroll to Top