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african nurses say they are being unfairly expelled from quebec program
nurses who came to quebec as part of initiative to lure 1,000 caregivers to the province say they're caught in a trap.
aug 22 2024
4 minute read
some nurses who left their lives in african countries to come to quebec say they were told they failed their courses after speaking out about their treatment, and now can't find another job or apply for unemployment benefits.
carlosdavid.org
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nurses from africa recruited to work in quebec say dozens of them have been unfairly expelled from their study programs, leaving them with no income and no other chances for employment.
several of the nurses. who came to quebec under a program started in 2022 designed to lure 1,000 international nurses to the province’s regions , were ejected after failing one course in a series of training modules designed to bring them into line with quebec nursing norms.
many said they were the victims of discrimination or harassment, including being given deodorant by their supervisors and being told by their teacher most africans are infected with sexually transmitted diseases in front of their classmates. some who spoke out or complained of abusive treatment by their training teachers said they were subsequently given a failing grade in the course, causing their expulsion.
“these are medical professionals who were successful in their country of origin and who decided to come to quebec to build a better life, and now they find themselves with broken careers and an uncertain future,” said roselyne koa ndzana, a former assistant head nurse in abitibi-témiscamingue who says she was fired last july, a month after speaking out publicly.
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ndzana, who is originally from cameroon but came to quebec after working in france, had a child while studying to be a nurse in quebec, and bought a house in the abitibi region.
“urgent measures must be taken to help us to survive and succeed,” ndzana said at a news conference organized by the center for research-action on race relations (crarr) thursday, speaking in french and english.
the nurses are calling for an independent investigation by quebec’s human rights tribunal and for a parliamentary committee at the national assembly. they are also requesting the federal government grant access to unemployment insurance to provide funds for lodging and food.
the nurses came as part of a $65-million initiative meant to entice 1,000 french-speaking nurses working overseas to settle in quebec in one of the seven regions suffering from a nursing shortage. as of december 2023, the government said it was short 3,871 nurses and 1,708 auxiliary nurses.
candidates, who were evaluated by quebec’s order of nurses to ensure they had the requisite skill levels, had to attend a cegep in the targeted regions to receive refresher training lasting nine to 12 months, and would be allowed to work 20 hours a week as orderlies at the same time. they would receive $2,000 a month during the training period and funds for public transportation and daycare. newcomers would then obtain their right to practise by passing the order of nurses’ exam. as of late 2023, it appeared the program was on track to meet its targets.
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since last year, however, close to 50 students said they have suffered arbitrary or discriminatory abuse that led to them being expelled. all of them are from african countries, said ndzana, who is helping to co-ordinate their campaign to gain publicity and restitution.
one male nurse with 10 years of experience who came from africa to work in the montérégie said he was expelled when he failed the second-to-last module of the training program. he was not allowed to retake the training at his cegep, or any other cegep, and was no longer allowed to work as an orderly.
because he had been brought to quebec under a specialized study program, he was not allowed to work anywhere else, “even at mcdonald’s,” said the nurse, who did not give his name for fear of endangering his wife’s job as an orderly. he also lost his $2,000 a month income. most candidates were not aware of those restrictions when they applied, he said.
“i came with my wife and children and now i have no job, and i live in a precarity that i have never lived in the last 10 years,” he said. “now we live on the low salary of my wife, and off of food banks.” no one in the family has health insurance, because candidates are not covered under quebec’s health insurance plan, and his private insurance from his home country will no longer cover him. although he paid contributions toward unemployment insurance, he’s not eligible to collect it.
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“we feel like we have fallen into a kind of trap,” he said.
“some had to return to their countries, but they have lost everything. they left their jobs there to come here, and now they have nothing.”
male nurses from africa were often the subject of discriminatory behaviour by their nursing teachers, said crarr’s director fo niemi. the nurse studying in the montéregie complained they were treated with the same expectations as quebec students in their 20s, when they were adults coming from a different nursing culture who also had families and jobs to contend with.
he said that 11 nurses who failed some of their courses in abitibi-témiscamingue were allowed to try again.
“if that is true, why can’t similar solutions found in other regions?”
several of the expelled students are suffering from depression and severe anxiety, ndzana said. they are calling on the government to offer financial and psychological support to families “living on the edge of a cliff.”
officials with quebec’s immigration ministry were not able to comment in time for publication.
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