Support our Healthcare System - Sign the Petition

For several months now, the Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec – FIQ, which represents 58,00 members, the vast majority of nursing and cardio-respiratory professionals, has been trying to negotiate an agreement with the Charest government seeking to ensure that they will have better working conditions. Obviously, these negotiations are important for the thousands of nurses, licensed practical nurses, respiratory therapists and perfusionists who, each day, work in our health network. These negotiations are also a determining factor for the whole population of Quebec, because their outcome will have direct consequences on maintaining the quality and accessibility of health care in Quebec.

The nursing shortage

There is currently a shortage of 4,000 nurses. The impact of this shortage is significant: unbearable work schedules, compulsory overtime work, professional burnout of our members, increased wait times in the health institutions, closed beds, lack of resources for home care, etc.

Thousands of nurses will be retiring over the next 4 years. Thousands of others will leave the public network for the private healthcare employment agencies where it is possible to choose their work schedules. Many others will simply quit the profession. There will be a shortage of 15,000 nurses in the public network in the very near future if something is not done now. It will be impossible, in this context, to guarantee that each citizen will have access to nursing services when he/she will need it.

Recently, the physician specialists, family physicians and several health specialists publicly stated that it will be impossible to guarantee an efficient public health network without resolving the nursing shortage. Therefore, it is imperative to attract a large number of young women and men to the profession. It is also necessary to implement the conditions needed to keep the nurses in the public network or delay their retirement for a few years. But, how can this be done when the current work schedules do not allow for a normal family life? How, when they are obligated to work 16 consecutive hours, often without advance notice? How, when there is a stunning number of nurses on professional burnout or on the point of burnout?

The battle the FIQ is presently waging goes beyond the simple interest of its members: it concerns the whole population. We are therefore asking citizens, organizations, associations and groups to sign this petition to indicate their agreement with the real issues of these negotiations and to show the importance given to the integrity of our health network.

Proposals adapted to the situation

The FIQ has tabled several proposals with the government and the administrators of the health institutions over the last few months. The FIQ has proposed, in particular, that each care professional work full time at 4 days a week, by increasing the number of hours worked per day. Several other professions, like the policemen and the firefighters, having to cover shifts 24 hours a day, seven days a week, have adopted this way of functioning and do not have any problems with recruitment or retention.

Unfortunately, those who manage our health network refused this proposal. They even stated that, if the schedules had to be modified, then all the costs associated with these changes had to be assumed by the respiratory therapists, licensed practical nurses, perfusionists and nurses themselves.

Private healthcare employment agencies

The health institutions managers have been using private agencies more and more to insure healthcare services for several years now. The personnel from these agencies are paid more than that paid to employees in the public network. Why continue to impose schedules that push the care professionals to leave the public network for the private agencies? How do the Charest government and the administrators of the institutions justify this practice?

A call for social solidarity

Faced with the Charest government's uncompromising position, action must be taken. We cannot let the Minister of Health dismiss the serious problems facing our health network. Up to now, the requests for help from the care professionals, physicians and the specialists have gone unheeded.

We are asking every citizen, every organization which has the maintenance of an effective health network at heart, to join in unison with the voice of the care professionals to bring the Charest government to assume its responsibilities for the population of Quebec.

Together, we can convince our decision-makers of their obligation to implement real solutions.

Régine Laurent,

President

Let's mobilize in order to have a healthcare system worthy of its name.

Sign the petition by clicking here.

If you are an organization, click here.

Thank you.