More nurses working in Quebec, but health care challenges remain

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New data shows there are more nurses working in Quebec in 2024, with an increase of 2.93 per cent compared to the same time last year, but officials stress the effectiveness of the public system relies heavily on them not transferring to the private sector.

According to the Quebec Order of Nurses (OIIQ), there are currently 82,381 registered nurses in the province.

Of that number, 70.81 per cent are working regular full-time hours.

Luc Mathieu, president of the OIIQ, notes that much of the increase is due to young people entering the workforce, though there are some instances of nurses renewing their expired licences.

"This also includes people who come from outside Canada. There are quite a few, for instance, who come from France," he explains. "Last year, that was 1,300 of the total, so it's significant."

When it comes to nurses potentially leaving for the private sector -- or leaving the province altogether -- Mathieu notes that it remains a "worrisome" problem.

"It's worrisome not because of the quality of the care but because it affects the strength of the public health care system," he said. "We want a strong public health care system."

In the last few years, Quebec nurse practitioners have gained more power to help patients and alleviate the pressure on family doctors.

This is something the OIIQ says it agrees with, as the aim is to ensure that every Quebecer has access to quality care from a professional -- not necessarily a doctor.

In fact, the provincial government says it wants all Quebecers to have access to a health care professional by 2026.

Nevertheless, Mathieu admits more research needs to be done to understand what may attract nurses to leave the public system.

"Is it the work conditions? The way they can exercise their autonomy, or not?" said Mathieu. "Do they have better clinical support? This is one of the biggest messages we hear because the complexity of care has changed in the last few years."

Mathieu explains that the OIIQ plans to update its portrait of the nursing profession every trimester to provide a continual and accurate picture of its workforce.

The average age of nurses in Quebec is 41.9, according to the OIIQ.