Over two years ago, the Pontiac Hospital in Shawville announced its temporary shut down of its obstetrics unit due to lack of available staff. Since then, it has been closed and mothers have had to travel hours to give birth at nearby hospitals.

On March 24, Associate Minister of Health Lionel Carmant officially . . .

responded to the petition that was presented by MNA André Fortin on February 9, 2022.

“Thanks for your petition. We are looking at options. We’re short specialized nurses. We are trying to recruit, but we lose a lot of nurses in your region,” said Carmant in his letter to the house.

The petition, signed by 1,055 Pontiacers, was initially put forward by an advocacy group, the Pontiac County Women’s Institute (PCWI), which called on the provincial government to put measures in place to relaunch the obstetrics service in Shawville as quickly as possible.

It was later given to Fortin who presented it to the legislature in Quebec City for a response on solutions to reopen the unit as it has been a contentious issue for young mothers in the region.

Fortin spoke to THE EQUITY and highlighted that the government’s response reiterated that there is a shortage and that they are looking for solutions, but didn’t offer any. The letter mainly points to hiring more staff, and one of the ways is increasing nurse’s salaries, according to Fortin.

“The answer that was provided in that letter was an insult to everybody who took the time to sign that petition,” he said.

On March 21, the CAQ government released the budget, which was an opportunity to address the nurse shortage through bonuses and an increase in salaries, but that was not reflected, noted Fortin. The government also needs to offer better working conditions to retain employment in the Pontiac he said.

“On the one hand, they did answer the petition, great. But on the other hand, in the budget, they chose not to provide the tools to really address the situation and reopen the service.”

Currently, Fortin plans to regroup with elected officials and community leaders in the area to formulate a response to the minister’s letter.

“This is unacceptable. It makes no sense from a service standpoint, from a patient safety standpoint, and from a quality care standpoint,” said Fortin.

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