Nurses sleeping at Montreal-area hospital if they work two 16-hour shifts
Private agency nurses who are desperately needed to fill shifts at a hospital near Montreal are sleeping at the hospital between two 16-hour shifts because they live far away and the hospital can't recruit nurses who live in the area.
Local health authorities also help pay for the mileage of any out-of-region nurses.
It's not a new problem in the West-Monteregie region, the local health board said.
In the summer of 2022, it resorted to offering nurses free accommodation under certain conditions if they agreed to take on shifts at Hopital du Suroit in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, when the impact of COVID-19 on staffing was still acute.
"The placement agencies we work with through the Centre d'acquisition gouvernementale were unable to meet our needs in terms of nursing staff," the West-Monteregie health board explained in an email.
To fill the huge gaps in staffing, incentives were created for private nurses and public sector nurses to help persuade them to agree to travel and also agree to work two double shifts of 16 hours in a row.
They include having their mileage repaid at a rate of $0.54/km if the nurses live more than 50 kilometres away from the hospital and free accommodation in hospital rooms set aside for this purpose.
"This does not change the hospitalization capacity," the West-Monteregie health board emphasized.
The interim president of the FIQ Monteregie-West union that represents nurses in the region said the health board is doing what it has to do to provide health care services to the population.
"It's the lesser evil. Anyone who works 16 hours in a row needs rest," said Maxime Laforge-Steben in an interview. But he said it's a symptom of a much deeper problem in the healthcare system, a problem he lays at the feet of the Quebec government.
"For us, the solution is to improve the quality of the working conditions quickly, and the salaries and that's why negotiations (with the government) are underway."
"The private nurses that do the 16 hours have a better salary than those in the public system," he said.
Fewer than 50 nurses have taken advantage of the incentives, the health board reported, but every extra nurse helps, it said.
Closing a unit in Suroit means the loss of 32 hospital beds, which affects patient care and creates critical overcrowding in the emergency room.
The challenges recruiting nurse, public or private are blamed in part on the remote locations of the hospitals located southwest of Montreal, including Hopital Barrie-Memorial in Ormstown.
"Attractiveness remains a major challenge. Many regions of Quebec share this challenge," the health board said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Trump fined US$1,000 for gag order violation in hush money case as judge warns of possible jail time
The judge presiding over Donald Trump's hush money trial has fined him US$1,000 for violating his gag order and sternly warned the former president that additional violation could result in jail time.
The story of how a B.C. man found his birth mother
After his adopted parents died, Dave Rogers set out to learn more about his birth mother. DNA results and a little help from friendly strangers would put him on a path to a small town in England.
When grief and AI collide: These people are communicating with the dead
AI tools can offer recommendations, answer questions and 'talk' with users. But some users are using them to recreate the likeness of the dead.
Spike in 'violent rhetoric' since Oct. 7 attack from 'extremist actors,' CSIS warns
The Israel-Hamas war has led to a spike in 'violent rhetoric' from 'extremist actors' that could prompt some in Canada to turn to violence, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service warns.
Italy's white-collar mafia is making a business killing
Italy's mafia rarely dirties its hands with blood these days. Extortion rackets have gone out of fashion and murders are largely frowned upon by the godfathers.
WestJet, mechanics union agree to tentative deal to avoid strike
A potential strike between WestJet and its mechanics union appears to have been avoided.
Russia announces nuclear weapon drills after angry exchange with senior Western officials
Russia plans to hold drills simulating the use of battlefield nuclear weapons, the Defense Ministry announced Monday, days after the Kremlin reacted angrily to comments by senior Western officials about the war in Ukraine and Moscow warned that tensions with the West are deepening.
Summer forecast: What to expect as El Nino weakens
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Actor Bernard Hill, of 'Titanic' and 'Lord of the Rings,' has died at 79
Actor Bernard Hill, who delivered a rousing cry before leading his people into battle in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' and went down with the ship as the captain in 'Titanic,' has died.