You have watched The world upside down VAT, Friday?
Stéphan Bureau interviewed Michelle Bourassa, the daughter of former Prime Minister Robert Bourassa, who recounted how her mother, Andrée Simard, died in appalling conditions at St. Mary’s Hospital Center.
It’s very simple, we would never treat an animal like that.
I don’t use this image to look pretty. It is the real truth.
Never would veterinarians treat a dog like the staff at this hospital treated Andrée Simard.
It is unworthy of a supposedly civilized nation.
« BURN-OUT COMPASSIONNEL »
During her interview, Ms. Bourassa said that every time she asked the nurses at St. Mary’s Hospital Center to give her dying mother morphine to relieve her pain, she was turned around like a pancake.
They yelled at her and threatened to take her out of the hospital manu militari…
We understand that certain professions require people to put their emotions “at a distance”: police officers, paramedics, emergency workers, shrinks…
You have to build yourself a shell, otherwise you crack.
But to use the apt expression used by Michelle Bourassa when I spoke to her in the guest lounge following the show, the nurses at this hospital center had not put their emotions “on the back burner”.
They didn’t have any more.
As if they were doing a “compassionate burn-out”.
We understand the situation: pandemic, labor shortage, extra work, pressure, fatigue…
Still, nothing justifies such a lack of humanity.
And the worst is that what happened to Ms. Simard is not an isolated “anecdote”.
On her Facebook page #MortEnSilence — For the respect of fundamental rights at the end of life, the daughter of the former prime minister publishes the testimonies of many people who have had the same kind of experience.
EVERYDAY INCOMPETENCE
Listening to Michelle Bourassa tell her story, I said to myself: it’s all very well, a reform, but it can’t solve everything.
There are people who are not cut out for this kind of work, period.
As there are people who are not made to be a teacher. Or cop.
The problem is that in the public service, no one is accountable, no one is responsible, no one is demoted and no one loses their job.
You will tell me that in the private sector, it’s not much better, as the CHSLD Herron tragedy proved, but at least you can fire a bad employee, whereas in the public sector, it’s almost impossible.
If we really want to fix our system, we should allow administrators to fire (or demote) bad employees.
Easier said than done in a context of labor shortage? Maybe, but this situation will eventually return to normal one day.
Seems like in the audience, there are never any consequences. Or only when there are mega high-profile blunders, like what happened to Joyce Echaquan at the Joliette hospital.
Everyday incompetence is almost never punished.
“Did you commit a major fault? There will be consequences! »
The message should be clear. Both in private and in public.
