The cuts of 1.5 billion in expenditure required from establishments to regain budgetary balance in the health network will have an impact on the retention of nursing staff and inevitably patient care, warned the re-elected president of the Order of nurses of Quebec (OIIQ), Luc Mathieu.
Posted at 1:15 p.m.
Katrine Desautels
The Canadian Press
On the sidelines of the OIIQ congress, the latter heard from nurses that there would be cuts to the positions of management advisors and care advisors. Mr. Mathieu stressed the importance of these positions in guiding and supporting nurses, particularly recruits.
“These people do not provide direct patient care. They support people, young people who are entering the profession,” explained Mr. Mathieu.
He spoke of certain cases which “are not anecdotal” where a new nurse will work in a CHSLD with many patients in her care. “This is not an exceptional case. These young people, who do not have much experience and not much clinical support, are called upon to take charge [jusqu’à] 150 residents in CHSLDs. It’s huge,” commented the president.
He specified that in CHSLDs, patients are often very ill and represent serious and complex cases to care for.
If a young nurse is starting out, without clinical support, without anyone to refer to, it can be panicking. And that’s why there are some who leave the profession, who run away.
Luc Mathieu, re-elected president of the Order of Nurses of Quebec
The OIIQ is concerned by this situation. “I spoke about it with a senior manager at Santé Québec,” shared Mr. Mathieu. He would have told her that if the agency moves forward with cuts to management and care advisors, “it would not be a win-win for the future.”
On the Ministry of Health website, we can read in the description of the position of nursing advisor that “her collaboration with co-managers, the integration sector as well as the advanced practice nurse is crucial. She contributes fully to various committees ensuring the development of nursing practice as well as the quality and safety of care for the emergency department. »
Until now, the deficit in the health network is estimated at around 1 billion. Last Friday, the Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, acknowledged that there could be an impact on services to the population and added that he wanted to be able to minimize these impacts.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Christian Dubé, Minister of Health
“They say there are no cuts to direct patient care. It is not direct care, it is indirect, recognized Mr. Mathieu. But the return on investment of providing clinical support makes all the difference. »
He explained that preceptors – also called mentors – support nurses throughout their careers. To highlight the importance of their role, Mr. Mathieu gave the example of a general practitioner who refers to a specialist doctor when he reaches the end of his competence for a particular case.
“In the case of nursing care, it’s a bit the same thing given the evolution and complexity of care, chronic illnesses, and the aging of the population,” mentioned Mr. Mathieu. He said that in all the regions he visited, nurses told him of needs for clinical support.
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