Embracing change and nurturing teamwork cited as keys to success of CIUSSS West-Central Montreal

The desire by staff to embrace and initiate change, combined with the ability to work productively in tightly knit teams, are two of the key factors that have enabled CIUSSS West-Central Montreal to excel on behalf of its patients, clients and residents, the network’s leaders have stated.

Speaking on November 8 at the CIUSSS’s eighth annual Public Information Meeting, Dr. Lawrence Rosenberg, President and CEO, told attendees the CIUSSS “has arrived at a point where making positive change is now second-nature to us—something we do almost instinctively.”

Associate CEO Lucie Tremblay and Gary Stoopler, Associate Executive Director, review the top achievements of CIUSSS West-Central Montreal in 2022-2023. (Click on this or any image to enlarge it.)

Following up on these comments, Associate CEO Lucie Tremblay noted that “we as professionals have made an active and ongoing effort to develop and nurture a strong sense of unity, in order to provide users with the best possible care.”

Alan Maislin, President of the Board of Directors, added that maintaining and defending the CIUSSS’s unique culture is not only his own personal goal, but should be the objective of every member of staff who believes the network can go on to greater heights.

The Public Information Meeting—held for the first time in the fully renovated auditorium on the main floor of Pavilion A at the JGH—was an opportunity for the public to hear about some of the CIUSSS’s outstanding achievements in 2022-2023, and to ask members of Senior Management about any aspect of the network’s activities and performance.

After briefly itemizing several of the year’s highlights, Dr. Rosenberg emphasized that these accomplishments “are not exclusively the result of our efforts during this year alone. Rather, they represent our willingness—in fact, our eagerness—to initiate change and see it through to its proper conclusion over a period of several years.”

Alan Maislin, President of the Board of Directors of CIUSSS West-Central Montreal.

Despite the importance of change, Dr. Rosenberg said, “We understand what should not be changed: compassion for our users, one-to-one contact with them, respect for their feelings, and a commitment to listening to their concerns.

“At CIUSSS West-Central Montreal, we certainly deserve to take pride in a job well done—but only if we realize it does not end there. Our obligation is to keep asking ourselves, ‘What more can we do?’”

Ms. Tremblay explained that the CIUSSS’s ability to move forward so dramatically is the result of a lengthy and ongoing effort to forge a sense of teamwork among staff in the network’s nearly three dozen healthcare and social services facilities.

“We persevered for years, relying on the patience, determination and professionalism of our staff,” she said. “The result is a strong sense of unity and cooperation that now enables numerous experts at multiple sites to work together more closely on behalf of our users.”

Mr. Maislin recalled his pledge, when the CIUSSS was newly formed, that the network’s distinctive culture would be non-negotiable. However, he added, “as we face new challenges—and there are many—it’s going to be incumbent upon each and every person in our CIUSSS to make sure that that stays true.”

After accepting the Award of Honour of the President and CEO, Joanne Côté (third from left) is congratulated by (from left) Alan Maislin, President of the Board of Directors; Dr. Lawrence Rosenberg, President and CEO; Associate CEO Lucie Tremblay; Beverly Kravitz, Director of Human Resources, Communications, Legal Affairs and Global Security; and Gary Stoopler, Associate Executive Director.

In recounting the major achievements of 2022-2023, Ms. Tremblay drew particular attention to what are known as the four pillars of “Care Everywhere”, the CIUSSS’s broad-based, user-centred approach to providing the right care at the right time at the location that is most appropriate for recipients:

• C4, the award-winning Command Centre, recently moved into spacious, new quarters at the JGH. The many large, wall-mounted screens display real-time data to aid staff in improving bedflow, streamlining admissions and discharges, and using predictive analytics to anticipate future difficulties.
• Virtual Care, including the award-winning Hospital@Home program, was expanded to encompass more than 29 trajectories. This has benefited more than 600 patients, while saving at least 3,000 hospital bed-days.
• OROT, the CIUSSS’s connected health innovation hub, was recently named among the international finalists for a prestigious Galien Foundation award in the category, “Best Incubators, Accelerators and Equity”.
• The Connected Health Record, whose first module will be launched soon, will eventually allow all relevant members of staff anywhere in the CIUSSS to view accurate, updated health information about any user.

Carrie Bogante, Director of Finance

Ms. Tremblay was also joined by Gary Stoopler, Associate Executive Director, to shine the spotlight on some of the year’s top CIUSSS-wide accomplishments. Among them:

• In the Frontline Services Directorate, Info-Santé 811 launched an additional, simplified telephone option to steer callers to the most appropriate member of staff able to respond to a request for help.
• The Nursing Directorate was instrumental in the development of the Belong app—winner of the Prix de cancérologie 2022—which provides bilingual information, resources and support to cancer patients and their families.
• To help caregivers, the Directorate of Academic Affairs and Research Ethics was placed in charge of the Quebec Observatory for Caregiving, where useful information and advice are shared. Generally, the government assigns projects of this magnitude to a university or a major monitoring agency.
• Under the supervision of the Directorate of Mental Health and Addiction, Aire ouverte inaugurated its new premises, offering 12- to 25-year-olds a place to discuss their problems confidentially with professionals, such as a nurse or social worker.
• As a result of a push by the Department of Communications and Media Relations to boost the CIUSSS’s social media presence, the network now has more than 45,000 followers across all platforms, making it the most followed CIUSSS in Quebec.
• The Support Program for the Autonomy of Seniors (SAPA) launched a program to help certain seniors make an easier transition from a hospital to a long-term care facility. The program allows these individuals to return home, where they spend a month or less while continuing to receive care and waiting for a transfer.

Jean-Philippe Payment, Commissioner of Complaints and the Quality of Service

The Public Information Meeting was an occasion to pay tribute to Joanne Côté with the Award of Honour of the President and CEO. Ms. Côté was most recently Director of Quality, Transformation, Evaluation, Value, Ethics and Virtual Care, having retired this past summer after more than 40 years of service.

Also on the agenda was the presentation of Awards of Excellence to outstanding members of staff, as well as overviews of 2022-2023 from Finance Director Carrie Bogante and from Jean-Philippe Payment, Commissioner of Complaints and the Quality of Service.