With just under two months to go before the deadline for ending the use of independent employment agencies, the Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, has announced that healthcare establishments will finally have until March 2025 to comply with the new regulations.

Vaudreuil MNA Marie-Claude Nichols is delighted to hear the news. “It's a good thing that the Minister of Health is reversing this decision, which is already having a negative impact in counties with exploding populations like Vaudreuil and Soulanges. The cuts, combined with the major traffic problems in the area, are jeopardizing the health and safety of citizens, which I find unacceptable! It's crucial to restore the right level of service. The health of our region's population depends on it,” she commented.

In fact, the independent MNA intends to make the issue of health, particularly in the region, her top priority when she returns to the National Assembly on September 10.

Initially, the various healthcare establishments in the Montérégie region, among others, had until October 20, 2024 to wean themselves off the independent workforce. 

Private establishments under agreement, those not under agreement, private seniors' residences and intermediate residences, for their part, will have until October 19, 2025 to comply. 

“The announcement of a six-month postponement of the initial deadline will enable us to continue our work, particularly with a view to recruiting staff to strengthen the public network. This change will benefit urban areas, remote regions and Santé Québec, which must ensure efficient transformation and workforce planning, for example with inter-institutional service loans and the introduction of flying teams,” states the Ministère de la Santé.

For her part, Julie Bouchard, president of the Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec (FIQ), sees this setback as a betrayal.

“The FIQ cannot remain silent in the face of this setback, which betrays the commitments made by the government. Remember that the first deadline of October 20, 2024 was supposed to mark a decisive turning point in ending this toxic dependence on employment agencies. The government has been incapable of creating the best conditions for offering quality care to the population, and for attracting care professionals to the regions in particular. Today, the placement agencies are unfortunately the winners,” says the president.

Impact in Vaudreuil-Soulanges

In order to meet ministerial targets, Hôpital du Suroît has been forced in recent weeks to temporarily close 45 of its 237 available medical beds.

“These closures are attributable to the labour shortage and our desire to gradually reduce the use of employment agencies. It should be remembered that recourse to agencies considerably hampers workforce planning and management, and has negative impacts on our ability to offer quality care to all,” suggested the communications department of CISSS de la Montérégie-Ouest.  

By e-mail, CISSSMO assures that measures are being put in place to reorganize services and recruit new staff. “To date, we have hired 197 employees from the agencies. We are continuing our efforts in this direction.“

According to estimates, the proportion of agency employees, more specifically category 1 nursing and cardio-respiratory staff at Suroît Hospital in 24/7 services, is around 8%.

Among the measures put in place, it should be recalled that an ambulance territory redistribution had to be implemented in order to reduce pressure on the Salaberry-de-Valleyfield hospital emergency department. 

As a result, residents of Vaudreuil-Dorion, Vaudreuil-sur-le-Lac and L'Île-Cadieux are now referred to the Lakeshore emergency department in Dorval. For patients from Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, the designated ER is Anna-Laberge in Châteauguay. 

“The redrawing of the ambulance territory enables the population to maintain access to safe, quality healthcare services in neighbouring establishments. It should be noted that users requiring immediate care are still referred to their local facility,” says CISSSMO. 

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Suroît Hospital: consequences of bed closures to be expected

CISSSMO recorded a deficit of $106,129,940 in 2023-2024