Vitalité CEO says N.B. gave the ‘green light’ to do what it needed to fix staffing crisis
Vitalité’s CEO is defending its use of travel nurses and the contracts they came with, saying she made the province aware of the “dire” need in the summer of 2022.
Dr. France Desrosiers said she made a presentation to the deputy health minister, beginning in July of 2022, explaining the situation the health network was facing.
She said 79 of their departments were experiencing critical shortages of staff, patients were receiving 1.3 fewer hours of care each day, 100 beds had already closed, and 50 patients requiring hemodialysis were at risk of not receiving their treatment.
“We had a meeting, the trustee myself and the deputy minister where he said that we have the green light to go ahead with the mandate to secure all our departments and services,” she said.
When asked if she had made it clear that would mean hiring travel nurses at a cost of million of dollars, she said: “Yes, he was aware.”
She made the comments to reporters during a committee meeting break at the New Brunswick legislature where Vitalité answered MLAs questions on what led to the health network spending $123 million on travel nurses.
At its peak, in September 2022, Vitalité was using 199 travel nurses a day. But Dr. Desrosiers said in 2022-23 they averaged about 100 travel nurses/day.
The CEO told MLAs Vitalité and Horizon collaborated and presented to government nine strategies to help alleviate the need for these agency nurses. Those occurred, according to Dr. Desrosiers, in the fall of 2022. Most of the options they outlined had to do with ways to retain existing nursing staff, like ensuring vacations and bonuses.
“The offers for retention, bonuses, etc. were all rejected, which would have alleviated the need for, for certain contracts for travel nurses,” said Patrick Parent, Vitalité’s assistant CEO.
He said using more travel nurses was one of the options included in the list of nine proposals.
Parent said the retention options would have cost less than the travel nurses.
Dr. Desrosiers clarified it wouldn’t have diminished the need for travel nurses but she believes those options would have alleviated it by about a third.
“We need to understand that with all the travel nurses that are within our network today, we still have 100 beds closed above and beyond that need. So we're still in critical state,” said Parent.
Green Party MLA Megan Mitton said she feels Vitalité has been able to clarify some gaps in what led to these contracts.
“I have a better understanding of what's happened, and I have a better understanding of the role that the Higgs government played in this in, refusing to answer the urgent calls for help that the two health authorities came together on,” she said.
These committee meetings stem from the New Brunswick auditor general’s report looking into the travel nursing contracts signed by Horizon and Vitalité Health Networks, and the departments of social development and health. That report was issued earlier this month.
In total, $173 million was spent on travel nurses. Vitalité has spent the most - $123 million – and is still under contract with one company until 2026.
For more New Brunswick news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6942695.1719445747!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
EXCLUSIVE Canadian lawyers play key role in money laundering, says financial intelligence report
A report by Canada's financial watchdog obtained by the Investigative Journalism Foundation working in collaboration with CTV News looked at Canadian lawyers' potential role in money laundering schemes, including those by organized crime groups like biker gangs and drug cartels.
Biden, Trump square off tonight in first U.S. presidential debate
Joe Biden and Donald Trump are preparing to square off in their first presidential debate of the campaign tonight as the tight race for leadership of the United States begins to ramp up.
How to watch the Trump-Biden CNN Presidential Debate
U.S. President Joe Biden and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump will go head-to-head on Thursday, June 27 in the first-ever debate between a sitting and former U.S. president. Here's how to watch the CNN Presidential Debate, follow along in a live chat with expert analysis on CTVNews.ca, and CTV News Channel's pre- and post-debate specials.
Evacuation planning for Canadians in volatile Lebanon underway: National Defence
As tensions in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel increase, Canada’s Department of National Defence confirmed plans to extract Canadians from the volatile country.
21 children are set to exit Gaza in first medical evacuation since early May
Twenty-one critically ill children were set to exit Gaza on Thursday in the first medical evacuation since the territory's sole travel crossing was shut down in early May, Palestinian officials said.
'Godfather' of AI pledges $1 million to fix Ontario Science Centre
A world-renowned Toronto academic known as the 'Godfather' of artificial intelligence has pledged $1 million to repair the roof of the Ontario Science Centre – as long as it stays on its current site.
Original 'Harry Potter' cover art sells for $2.6 million, setting auction record
The original illustration for the first edition of J.K. Rowling’s 1997 novel “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” has sold for a record-breaking C$2.6 million.
'Inhumane': Residents of Toronto condo report stifling temperatures after weeks without air conditioning
Entering their fourth week without air conditioning in their downtown Toronto condo, residents say stifling indoor temperatures have become 'unbearable.'
Bill Cobbs, 'Air Bud' and 'The Sopranos' actor, dies at 90
Bill Cobbs, the veteran character actor who became a ubiquitous and sage screen presence as an older man, has died. He was 90.