Highlights of the Board of Directors’ regular public meeting

Bathurst, Tuesday, April 13, 2021 – The Board of Directors of Vitalité Health Network held its regular public meeting on Tuesday, April 13, 2021 via an online conferencing system.

Update on the COVID-19 pandemic

In her report, the President and CEO, Dr. France Desrosiers, delivered an update on the COVID-19 pandemic situation. She summarized one year of pandemic, mentioning the points below in particular:

  • The Network’s ability to manage internal outbreaks, which has allowed us to compensate for acute staff shortages in many areas;
  • The advantages of working as an integrated network, which has allowed us to share information and resources quickly and efficiently during the crisis;
  • The effective implementation of our rapid intervention teams in care homes, which has proven a remarkable success;
  • The outstanding work performed by the Microbiology Laboratory at the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont UHC, which has shown itself to be one of the best laboratories in Canada, with response times often under 24 hours (from screening to result);
  • Our COVID-19 preventive measures in our hospital settings, which have allowed us to better manage disease transmission in general, as evidenced by our total lack of seasonal influenza cases this year.

COVID-19 vaccination

Vaccination of the Network’s health care workers began last December and has been tremendously successful. As of March 30, 2021, just over 6700 of the Network’s health care workers had received at least one dose of the vaccine, which represents 80 percent of our staff.

As part of the provincial government’s COVID-19 Vaccination Deployment Plan, the Network has worked with our other health system partners to set up vaccination clinics for the general public as well as target groups. Across the Network, 18 vaccination clinics have been deployed in all our zones since late March to vaccinate the population based on the order of priority set by Public Health. Over the past few weeks, the Network has mounted dynamic campaigns to recruit the volunteers and employees needed to staff these clinics effectively.

Evaluation of organizational performance

Over the coming months, the Network will evaluate its organizational performance. This exercise must determine the current performance of the Network’s clinical services and organizational structure and how this performance has evolved since 2008. The evaluation must also determine which services could be offered outside the hospital’s traditional service delivery model and which best practices could be adopted. The firm Ernst and Young (EY) of New Brunswick has been tasked with conducting this evaluation, with the final report due on June 30, 2021.

Financial results for the 2020–2021 fiscal year

The Network presented its financial results for the first 11 months of the 2020–2021 fiscal year, i.e. from April 1, 2020 to February 28, 2021. The organization ended the period with a $5.94 million operating deficit. The activities required to manage the COVID-19 pandemic accounted in large part for this result.

Highlights related to the medical sector

“Vitalité Health Network continues to be proactive in planning medical recruiting activities. A regional medical staff plan was implemented to take stock of the current and future needs of the population. A medical recruiting strategy tested by medical students is also in place and already showing excellent potential. In addition, we have set up local committees comprised of several representatives from diverse communities whose objective is to ensure retention of new physicians by encouraging them to settle in the region long term. We also make sure to participate in the provincial recruiting committees as well as the job fairs held across the country. All these efforts, combined with the strengthening of financial incentives in 2020, represent only a tiny portion of the initiatives and processes implemented to hire new physicians. In 2019, 22 family physicians and specialists were added to the organization. This same number was added again the next year, i.e. in 2020. However, the challenges remain unchanged: as of April 7, 2021, 34 positions were available in the Beauséjour region (Moncton), 26 in the Northwest (Edmundston), 26 in Restigouche and 36 in the Acadie-Bathurst region. The less competitive pay here than in other francophone remote areas and the confidentiality policies of universities are just a few of the determining factors that undermine all our recruiting efforts,” said Dr. Natalie Banville, Vice-President of Medical Affairs.

Major infrastructure projects

During the meeting, the Network presented an update on five major infrastructure projects that are underway or being planned for 2021–2022, namely:

  • Development of the Intermediate Care Unit at the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont UHC, in Moncton;
  • Expansion of the Chaleur Regional Hospital, in Bathurst;
  • Plans and specifications for the Live-In Concurrent Disorder Treatment Centre, in Campbellton;
  • Programming phase of the Youth Mental Health Centre, in Moncton;
  • Functional and technical program for the expansion of the Emergency Department and Ambulatory Care at the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont UHC.

Thank you to all volunteers

The President and CEO highlighted National Volunteer Week, which takes place from April 18 to 24 this year. The CEO thanked the many volunteers who give of their time to improve our patients’ well-being. “I want to thank each and every volunteer who works within our Network,” Dr. Desrosiers declared. “Their ongoing efforts are essential to our health care system and we have a duty to recognize their commitment.  From the bottom of my heart I wish to express our sincere thanks.”

The next regular public meeting of the Board of Directors of Vitalité Health Network will be held on Tuesday, June 22, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. The regular meeting will be followed by the 2020–2021 annual general meeting.