Politics, election a factor in travel nurse talk: Vitalité

'It's almost like we have a dual dialogue' with government, says board chair

Published Apr 11, 2024 • 5 minute read

Health Minister Bruce Fitch is pictured in this file photo. Photo by ANDREW WAUGH/BRUNSWICK NEWS

Politics and the impending election are likely factors in the big difference between public and private conversations between the province and Vitalité about the controversial travel nurse contracts, say the two most senior members of the network’s board of directors.

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The government, however, says its communications are “consistent” in public and behind closed doors, and that the big challenge for Vitalité is to stay within its allotted budget.

In a recent interview with Brunswick News, Vitalité board chair Tom Soucy and vice-chair Réjean Després said that given their “constant communication” with the province, Horizon Health Network and others, they were surprised to receive a letter last fall from Health Minister Bruce Fitch urging Vitalité to rein in its spending.

They said they were also surprised by some comments made by Deputy Health Minister Eric Beaulieu during an appearance before a legislative committee earlier this year. He said the government was aware of one travel nurse contract between Vitalité and Ontario-based Canadian Health Labs (CHL), but not two others.

Vitalité “went outside the normal practice” by signing two of the three contracts without the knowledge of the health department, Beaulieu said. Typically, he said, contracts of this “magnitude, duration and dollar figure” would involve the department.

And Premier Blaine Higgs has said that while he was aware of the contracts’ existence, he didn’t know the finer details – a comment that has been met with skepticism from the Liberals and Greens.

It’s difficult to understand how the province could say it didn’t know exactly what was going on, Després said.

“These contracts were signed in 2022, and yet they only seemed to have become an issue in fall of 2023,” he said. “You can make up your own mind as to what that means, but we’ve been reporting the financial gap that these (travel contracts) have been creating since 2022, and projecting these deficits all through last year.

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“So to say that this was a surprise to them, I’m trying to find how that could be a surprise.”

The travel nurse contracts – signed by Vitalité and Horizon to keep the health system running as pandemic staff shortages climbed – are worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Vitalité has three active travel nurse contracts. The biggest, with CHL, doesn’t expire until February 2026.

Several other provinces, including Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador, signed similar contracts. In some instances, the companies providing the nurses are being paid more than $300 an hour per nurse.

When the contracts were signed, a few months after Higgs fired Horizon and Vitalité’s elected boards, the province had assigned trustees to both Regional Health Authorities. The current boards, made up of appointees picked by the government, weren’t in place.

In a letter recently shared by Vitalité, its former trustee Gérald Richard rejected any suggestion that the government didn’t know exactly what was going on.

“Today, I am saddened by the public debate surrounding the use of agency staff and the imputed motives of Vitalité Health Network, which had no other choice, and which had its back against the wall, as the network’s president and CEO explained,” Richard wrote.

“As a trustee, I supported this decision, and I can attest that the Department of Health did as well. I continue to defend this decision because it was taken in the best interests of patients and staff.”

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After urging from Higgs and Health Minister Bruce Fitch, auditor general Paul Martin is investigating the contracts. It’s unclear when his probe will be wrapped up.

Soucy said when he speaks to the government, including Higgs, Fitch, and Beaulieu, “we have very good dialogue … it looks like it’s going in the right direction.”

“Where I find some disconnect is the dialogues that I would have with them, on a one-to-one (basis) or a small group to a small group, and then what’s being perceived, or said or told in the media,” Soucy said. “Because I think our daily dialogue, and our communication, has some pretty good flows, and some good points, and we share a common goal that we want to protect the New Brunswick population … and we want to save lives, and we want to do it at the best cost possible.

“We’re all on the same page, and it looks like the dialogue is going that way, and then all of a sudden we hear something different when they are interviewed, by the finance committee let’s say, or whatever.

“So the one-on-one dialogue I would have with them … would be totally different than what’s being perceived and said in the media, or by the media. And I’m not saying it’s the media throwing us under the bus, not at all.

“It’s almost like we have a dual dialogue (with government).”

Després agreed.

“I knew there would be politics in health care, but probably underestimated (how much),” Després said. “I don’t want to be too political in my comments, but if the government wants quality people to join their board – and we were appointed by the government to be on these boards – I think we have to feel like we’re going to be supported, both in our private conversations but also in the public forum.

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“And I’m not saying that we should not be scrutinized and governed. We’re dealing with taxpayer dollars. Tom and I both work for large corporations – we take that seriously in our day jobs. We’re not going to be misspending public funds.

“I guess we’re in a political election year. And it does create a lot of tension.”

Told of Soucy and Després’s comments, Fitch said he’s “not sure what to make of that.”

“Whether it’s front-facing publicly, or within the conversations we had with the various boards at the various levels, I think it’s consistent,” Fitch said. “We strongly say, in the (fall 2023) letter you mentioned, about working to come in within budget, that’s been a conversation we’ve always had, whether it’s front-facing or whether it’s in the (private) conversations we’ve had.

“We have a good working relationships … I think part of the challenge is to work with the budget allotment, which was just passed last week, as we progress into the new (fiscal) year.”

In their day jobs, Soucy and Després said, they work hard to avoid surprises. Fitch agreed that not blindsiding anyone is crucial.

“That’s what we’ve always talked about – no surprises. Sometimes people get caught off guard by a letter or a statement, or something like that,” Fitch said. “I’ve been around long enough (to know that) unfortunately, sometimes that happens. But again, I stress that working together is the way to get things done.”

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