MONTREAL -- While the fast-tracked orderly training program this summer added a lot of manpower to Quebec’s care homes, it didn’t all work out perfectly, either.
Out of the 10,000 people recruited for the three-month program, more than a third didn’t finish the training—either because they flunked or gave up, unwilling to cope in the end with the demands of the job.
Some of the students say they’re left with a bad taste and the threat of considerable debt.
One who quit said that while the job requirements were clear, those in the fast-tracked class weren’t welcomed when it came to doing their on-the-ground training at CHSLDs.
“The staff does not like the new people that come in, they do not like the students who walk into that building—we do have targets on our back, because we wear different colour scrubs in order to represent ourselves,” said Antonina Dikakis.
“Asking someone for help, they look at you like you have six heads.”
Dikakis said she was dismissed before she could finish—and she was notified she could be forced to reimburse the $9,000 it cost to train her.
“It stresses us out because even if we were to find employment elsewhere, we still have this hanging over our heads,” she said.
Premier François Legault insists the contracts held a provision that if the trainees chose not to work in the health system in the end, they would be on the hook for the cost of their training, which was free.
Right now, the government is training 3,000 more orderlies to make up for those who didn’t make the cut.
Watch the video above for the full TV report.
