This text is part of the special Nursing Profession notebook
Even though they have less than five years of experience, the finalists for the Florence Prize 2023 in the Next Generation category are already distinguished by their commitment and their strong professional identity. The credibility they quickly acquired allows them to exert a positive influence in their community.
Fabian Severino: a nurse in a helicopter
Originally from Switzerland, Mr. Severino was a paramedic in his native country before arriving in Quebec in 2014. It was here that he decided to begin studying nursing, due to the diversity of jobs offered by the occupation. “I started from scratch with a DEC and then continued with a bachelor’s degree in nursing,” says the man who is also a clinical nurse in the emergency room of the Enfant-Jésus hospital. “That was really what stimulated me, the emergency services,” says the man who worked part-time while finishing his studies.
Currently a master’s student, Fabian Severino is interested in transfers between hospitals. “I realized that it is very different in Quebec compared to what I knew in Switzerland. There are a lot of things to develop here,” believes the man who is writing his dissertation at Laval University.
His work focuses on transfers from the Enfant-Jésus hospital to the University Hospital of Quebec. “I am also doing a systematic review protocol on interventions that aim to improve interhospital transfer, whether by land, air or helicopter,” he explains.
In addition to his studies and his employment in the emergency room, Mr. Severino is one of two helicopter flight nurses in Quebec. “It’s growing more and more. It’s coming in the next few years,” predicts the man who just celebrated his 35th birthday.
A position at Airmedic gives him autonomy in the profession, in the four corners of Quebec, from Gouin Reservoir to James Bay. “We have a call from people, at the outfitter or in the forest. They have a problem, we take off and we go look for them,” he summarizes. His job requires him, among other things, to carry out complete assessments and grants him the right to apply collective prescriptions. He can also telephone a doctor on call to obtain medical prescriptions. “I fell in love with it. It stimulated me because it reminded me of the pre-hospital side I had when I was an ambulance technician in Switzerland,” he says.
In order to give his colleagues an injection, he multiplies his publications and presents numerous conferences on hospital transfers or emergencies. He notably hosted an event on penetrating trauma which occurs by gunshot or knife. “It is important for me to be able to share the expertise that I have acquired and the knowledge that I have in this environment. Teaching others is very rewarding,” he emphasizes.
Since 2021, he has also sat on the board of directors of the Association of Emergency Nurses of Quebec (AIIUQ). “I take care of the events side, I am co-director. I organize the congress, I oversee the scientific programming,” he explains.
In order to train the next generation, he also supervises students during their critical care internship. “They are quite anxious to know if they will be able to adapt to stress and sometimes completely unforeseen situations. I like to teach them that no matter what happens, they have the knowledge to do it. They just need to take a step back to assimilate all the information in order to provide the best care possible. »
Stacey Corriveau: mental health expert
After a career as a special educator and addiction worker, Stacey Corriveau had only one goal: to become a nurse. Today, she uses her expertise in mental health for the well-being of patients. It’s not that she no longer loved her previous job, but it was to benefit from more autonomy in her profession that the woman who has been a nurse since 2018 decided to resume her studies at CEGEP. “I didn’t have that with special education. But I wanted to work with the same clientele,” explains the woman who is now a clinical executive advisor at the CIUSSS de l’Estrie.
Her knowledge also helped her when she worked in the emergency room of Granby hospital. “When you work with people who have cognitive limitations or who are in psychosis, it is more difficult to establish a connection with them. It’s not up to them to adapt to us, but the opposite, and build on their strengths,” she says. A way of doing things that made it easier for him to deal with all clients, by adapting his care according to his patient. “It helped me a lot,” adds the woman who has since completed a bachelor’s degree in nursing and is currently studying for a master’s degree at the University of Sherbrooke.
His dissertation also focuses on suicide prevention in emergencies and upon returning home and on the safe discharge plan, a tool that professionals use to assess the risks in suicidal people. “It’s to give the patient a list of solutions, of adaptation strategies with which they will be able to go home. It’s about ensuring that when the person returns home, they recognize the warning signs,” describes M.me Corriveau. She also raises awareness among her colleagues of this rule of care, as well as members of the Association of Emergency Nurses of Quebec (AIIUQ).
Very involved in the profession, Stacey Corriveau is also a member of the organizing committee of the annual next generation day of the CIUSSS de l’Estrie. She also serves as vice-president of the Youth Committee of the regional order of nurses in the region. Thus, she works to inform future nurses about the different scholarship options and also offers networking activities. “We try to support them in their development,” she summarizes.
To encourage her peers to thrive, she also participated in a podcast demystifying anxiety among novice nurses. “When you start in the profession, anxiety is part of the stages of development. I explain how we can support a new colleague who is experiencing this reality,” she explains.
Despite his young age, Mme Corriveau multiplies his activities. After having been an internship and laboratory instructor in mental health, she is now a lecturer at the University of Sherbrooke. “It’s one of my hobbyists. Seeing students who are just starting out in the profession gives me back my sacred fire, which is already very strong. I find them really inspiring. »
Justine Tremblay: better care for Indigenous people
Justine Tremblay fell into the profession of nursing since childhood, with a father who worked in the same profession. The one who graduated in 2019 has the human side and the well-being of patients at heart.
“I grew up with a father who told me his anecdotes around the table,” remembers the 27-year-old young woman. The one who is today an executive nurse advisor in nursing care at the CIUSSS de Lanaudière chose to follow in her footsteps because of the contact with the public.
After a college diploma in natural sciences, she enrolled in a bachelor’s degree in nursing at the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières (UQTR). She then continued her master’s studies in research, before working as a nurse in community settings. “We hear a lot about hospitals, where nurses work. But there are so many other possibilities: private, public, community, CHSLDs, she lists. We have different avenues that allow us to evolve and move towards the job that we like. »
It was during her bachelor’s degree that Justine Tremblay became interested in the care given to First Nations and Inuit, thanks to one of her professors. “It led me to read a lot of articles only to realize that in the end, I knew nothing. For me, it was still ironic to learn approaches adapted to certain cultures, but we were never told about that of Aboriginal people,” she recalls. The nurse then became aware of the “great unmet needs” for First Nations who arrive in cities to receive health care.
She became interested in the perinatal experiences of First Nations women as part of her master’s work, which she completed in December. She notes “a lot of similarities” between the services given to these patients and those provided to other clienteles. “Deep down, everyone hopes to have kind care, imbued with respect and empathy,” she summarizes.
However, certain cultural practices differ. She therefore wants her colleagues to be aware of this knowledge in order to adapt their care to be better able to support an Indigenous patient and meet their needs. “For example, the retrieval of the placenta among the Attikameks can have significance. But for us who are non-native, it is not necessarily something that we will do straight away,” she illustrates.
For her, there is “no miracle recipe”, apart from that of kindness. “There are traumas, and we have to be aware that the person may have experienced something. It’s not just with Indigenous clients, but with any other clientele as well,” she says.
For two years, Justine Tremblay has now been an executive advisor. She supports her colleagues there to ensure quality and safety of care. “We help people through what we offer to nurses. It’s really different,” she says.
Mme Tremblay would like to invest in his position and is toying with the idea of starting a family. In the longer term, she wishes to continue her studies to deepen her knowledge of the care provided to indigenous populations. “For now, I want to take a step back and settle down. But it would be to establish more collaborations within the framework of my work with different indigenous authorities. »
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