Montréal Gazette, November 24, 2010 The Québec Order of Nurses is offering temporary work permits to 118 French nurses so they can start working in this province even before a formal France-Québec protocol is signed. That agreement recognizes the qualifications of French and Québec registered nurses to work in either jurisdiction. The Order, which governs 71,000 nurses, announced Wednesday it is offering the temporary permits to nurses with a diploma from France and who have been hired by a public health-care facility here. In November 2009, more than 170 French nurses committed themselves to work in Québec starting in spring, the Order said. An average of seven in 10 French nurses stay on after five years, the Order added. © Copyright (c) The Montréal Gazette

Montréal Gazette, November 20, 2010 Quebec's largest nurses' union have approved a new contract for its 58,000 members. The deal was okayed by a "strong majority" of delegates at a meeting in Montreal, the union announced yesterday. Final ratification for the full membership will be sought in a referendum January 19 and 20. The deal includes a 3.45-per-cent pay increase for shift work. Nurses working regular day shifts in CLSCs and other public institutions will receive a two-per-cent pay hike per year. They also negotiated shift premium increases of up to 14 per cent for working nights or in wards with increased responsibility and stress. The top hourly wage for a registered nurse is $36 an hour. © Copyright (c) The Montréal Gazette

CBC News, November 15, 2010 Québec's largest nursing union reached a tentative deal with the province over the weekend, bringing an end to a year of tense negotiations. More than 58,000 nurses will vote later this month on the agreement in principle that was reached Sunday between the Quebec government and the Fédération interprofessionelle de la santé du Québec (FIQ). The new contract, if approved, would give nurses a two per cent wage hike, in addition to a 3.45 per cent wage increase when they have to stay late to hand off patient information to the next nurse on duty. The province also promised to reduce the use of private nursing agencies. ... Québec

Key gain is pay hike for shift work. Sue Montgomery & Kevin Dougherty, Montréal Gazette, November 15, 2010 After a year of tough negotiations, Québec's largest nurses' union said yesterday it won important gains in an agreement in principle reached Saturday with the provincial government, including an annual 3.45-percent pay increase for shift work. Nurses working regular day shifts in CLSCs and other public institutions will receive a two-per-cent pay increase per year. The 58,000 members of the Fédération interprofessionelle de la santé du Québec, who often have gone on strike to get a deal ... Largest

Charlie Fidelman, Montréal Gazette, November 8, 2010 A suicide attempt at a Québec City hospital that comes in the wake of four recent suicides has once again raised questions about nurses’ difficult working conditions, including excessive overtime and workloads. Experts at a McGill University nursing conference held Friday tackled some of these questions. Working conditions play a large role in whether a nurse wants to stay on the job, said Sandie Larouche, Nursing Explorations 2010 conference co-chair. All hospitals have staff shortages, yet some are better at hanging onto their nurses, she said. ... Nurses

Éric Marquis, World Socialist Web Site, September 6, 2010 A 58 year-old nurse working at Québec City’s Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec (CHUQ) recently took her own life. It was the fifth suicide of a nurse at this institution in 18 months. In a letter addressed to those nearest to her, the latest suicide victim, a 58 year-old nurse with 37 years working experience, reportedly attributed at least some of the difficulties that caused her to take her own life to management’s insistence that she return to work from medical leave before she felt capable of resuming work. This became public when a nurse contacted the TVA television network to draw attention to the connection ... Rash

Frustration, stress and exhaustion has led many to jump ship to private agencies. Charlie Fidelman, Montréal Gazette, August 19, 2010 Montréal - One day after Québec announced a billion-dollar investment to revamp and expand the Sainte Justine University Hospital Centre, the federation representing the province's nurses said the government should address the nurses' working conditions before funding bricks and mortar and infrastructure development. Frustrated, the nurses are threatening to strike. Contract negotiations have been stalled since the nurses unanimously rejected the government's offer last month. ... Staff

Marianne White, Postmedia News, August 13, 2010 Québec - A nurses' federation in Québec is worried about a rash of suicides among health-care workers in Québec City after at least one of the nurses blamed her difficult working conditions in a suicide letter. Management of the Québec City's teaching hospitals network (CHUQ) said this week that four of its nurses killed themselves over an 18-month period. "It's alarming and this might not be an isolated case. It could happen in other hospitals," said Caroline Valiquette, an adviser at Québec's largest nurses' union, the FIQ.  ... Rash

Brian Daly, QMI Agency, August 12, 2010 Québec City – The opposition is calling for a public inquiry into suicides among Québec health-care workers after a QMI investigation revealed that at least five nurses at the same hospital killed themselves over an 18-month period. All of the nurses worked at Québec City teaching hospitals, QMI has learned. Their union says all had family problems, but a colleague of several of the dead women tells QMI that poor working conditions were to blame. ... Rash

Have power to prescribe drugs, perform tests. Jamie McCallum, Montréal Gazette, July 15, 2010 The Québec government will spend $117 million to add 500 front-line nurses to the health-care system by 2018, the Ministry of Health and Social Services announced yesterday. Unlike regular nurses, a frontline nurse must have completed a Master's degree after acquiring at least two years of experience in the field. In addition, they are authorized to prescribe medication, perform diagnostic tests, and provide prenatal care for the first 32 weeks of a pregnancy. Regular nurses are not authorized to do any of these. ... Québec

CBC, July 15, 2010 Québec is injecting $117 million to train 500 front-line nurse practitioners by 2018, in an effort to increase access to primary health care. Québec is injecting $117 million to train 500 front-line nurse practitioners by 2018, in an effort to increase access to primary health care. The province only has 25 so-called "supernurses" on the ground - well behind Ontario's estimated 1,900 nurse practitioners. Nurse practitioners have a graduate degree and can prescribe medication and provide prenatal care. ... Québec

Premiums to rise in new contract. Moderate rise in extra pay for working hardest jobs is the first in 25 years. Irwin Block, Montréal Gazette, June 11, 2010 When union leader Nadine Lambert resurfaces as an intensive-care nurse, she believes the proposed new deal on working conditions will result in major improvements for herself and 108,000 workers in Quebec's health and social services sector. Lambert, president of the nurses' union affiliated with the Confederation des syndicats nationaux, set aside her day job at Ste. Justine's Hospital to negotiate the non-monetary clauses of the tentative agreement reached Thursday. ... Nurses

Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions, June 9, 2010 Ottawa - The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU) offers absolute support to the Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec (FIQ) as Quebec health care professionals take steps to improve their contract and working conditions. Nursing leaders from every province in Canada as well as their national president, Linda Silas, are offering FIQ their collective and personal best wishes and support. "The nursing shortage has been serious across Canada for many years now, and Quebec is no exception," said CFNU president, Linda Silas. ... Solidarity

Kevin Dougherty, Montéal Gazette, June 8, 2010 Québec - Nurses belonging to the 58,000-member Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec began a siege of the Québec National Assembly at 4 AM Tuesday, pledging to continue their protest until the assembly adjourns for the summer on Friday. Singing, "Oh non Charest," dancing and waving FIQ banners, about 100 nurses from across the province joined their president Régine Laurent in pressing their demands for better working conditions. ... Québec

Nurses' lobby decries draft law. Charlie Fidelman, Montréal Gazette, May 27, 2010 The head of Québec's federation of nurses is calling on the provincial government to scrap a draft law that would cut health sector training budgets by 25 per cent. "It's irresponsible," said Gyslaine Desrosiers, president of the Ordre des infirmiéres et infirmiers du Québec. "I'm surprised that we're attacking professional know-how in a health system that is already chaotic." Desrosiers said yesterday her goal is to raise the alarm about Bill 100 "so it doesn't get swept in silently." ... Health