DARIUS SHAHHEYDARI
PONTIAC April 29, 2020
In a press release on April 20, the Centre intégré de santé et de service sociaux de l’Outaouais (CISSSO) announced they have hired just over 400 personnel since the start of the COVID-19 crisis in order to fulfill their urgent need for employees during this time.
Those who are interested to help with the COVID-19 crisis can sign up to do so at jecontribuecovid19.gouv.qc.ca.
Once an individual has signed up, they receive a call from CISSSO asking them to provide their education background and any experience they may have had in the health care field. CISSSO then designates a position to the individual based on this information, with jobs ranging from nursing to folding sheets laundry rooms.
“I think everybody has something to offer,” said CISSSO’s Deputy Director General Stephane Lance. “We just have to make sure we match their skillset to what is needed. I can’t take a mechanic and turn him into a registered nurse.”
Training for positions is split up into two seperate two-hour segments. The first segment consists of instructional videos and learning the basics and the second segment is on-the-job training, where the individual is paired up with an experienced person in their respective field.
“One of the most important parts of their training is everything that has to do with their protective equipment: knowing how to put it on, how to take it off; when to put it on, when to take it off,” said Lance. “It’s basic stuff, but it’s life saving stuff.”
Hours are flexible to the individual’s availability, and the pay is equivalent to that of anybody else in the respective position.
The 400 or so employees hired by CISSSO during this period are mostly composed of nurses, auxiliary nurses, service aides and orderlies. Hiring continues as there is still a growing need of additional employees, particularly in the long-term care facilities in the region (CHSLDs).
Tom McCann, a support worker at Centre D’Accueil Pontiac in Shawville, said the practices in his field have changed in response to the virus. In addition to their regular practice of wearing gloves, support workers are now also wearing masks as well.
“As soon as somebody coughs or their breathing changes, they get tested [for COVID-19] right away, even though it might be just a cough that’s going to go away in a day or two, nothing is left to chance,” he said.
According to McCann, no services provided by the support workers which involve interacting with the residents have been restricted, however, residents are given the option to opt out of services provided at their home for the time being. Workers are taking much more precaution with the residents, specifically those who are known to have pre-existing breathing issues.
The support worker also said the province has taken timely and efficient measures against the spread of the novelty virus so far, subsequently playing into the region’s favour.
“A lot of other places have not put in the restrictions in place as soon as Quebec did, so for a smaller population area like Pontiac, in this one case, we’re lucky and better off because we have not been exposed to things the same way,”
Another aspect which came into Pontiac’s favour, according to McCann, is the region’s smaller population compared to larger urban centres, which meant there were less dwellers returning from vacation in that critical time about a month ago.
Anyone who may think they are having symptoms of the virus or who simply has concerns about it can call 819-644-4545, or visit quebec.ca/coronavirus for more information.
