There is a reasonable suspicion on our partsays the President and CEO of the Fédération des cégeps, Bernard Tremblay.

In his eyes, the behavior of the Order is almost right absurd while presenting the educational institutions with a fait accompli without having discussed his intention to introduce a new test.

Thursday theOIIQ has expressed its desire to adopt the test known by its English acronym NCLEX-RN. This is the American standardized exam used in other Canadian provinces.

This seems to me a response aimed at making one forget all the mistakes that the Order has made in recent years and the impact of its methodologically unfounded and flawed examinations.he replies, recalling that people are currently suffering the consequences of this lack of consistency.

Bernard Tremblay is hoping for government action as he sees the Order rejecting the harsh criticism he has received in recent reports from the Commissioner for Admissions to Professions.

He even accuses the order of not having done so no consideration for students who are currently studying.

The Fédération des cégeps is part of the Coalition for the Preservation of DEC Degree in Nursing. This group also includes the Quebec Collegiate Student Federation (FECQ). Its president, Maya Labrosse, says she doesn’t understand the party’s stubbornnessOIIQ while the university network offers much better access to education.

In terms of the financial and geographic accessibility of the profession, there is no doubt that the college network is an important asset for enrolling nurses into the healthcare network.she pleads, citing that 46 of the 48 public CEGEPs offer it DEC in nursing.

Universities could never compete with the size of the cohorts produced by CEGEPs each year. Maya Labrosse goes even further, accusing the Order of failing in its duty to protect the public in its campaign against higher education.

” By denying nurses qualifications and denying them that access, we would lose hundreds of nurses every year. »

At the Order of Nurses of Quebec, Director of Admissions and Registry, Chantal Lemay, reiterates thisAn examination does not serve as proof of training […]it checks the ability to practice safely.

She adds that regardless of the assessment method chosen, programs must prepare people to practice the profession. In their opinion, the decision to introduce the NCLEX-RN was more driven by the need to upgrade to meet North American standards.

Chantal Lemay ensures that the exam and training documents are available two different subjects.

Says the minister NO!

Visibly angry at the actions ofOIIQBernard Tremblay insists it is not [son] The role in determining the level of education lies with the Minister for Higher Education.

When asked about this, Minister Pascale Déry’s office made it clear that it was not in favor of raising the minimum threshold for access to the nursing profession.

There is no talk of abolishing the technical programwe were told. We cannot do without all qualified graduates, they need quick access to the network.

The Minister’s office also notes that the current context of labor shortages is sufficient to close the debate.

A decision already made

The premature decision ofOIIQ seems at first sight to be a reaction to the report of the admissions officer, who has sharply criticized the methodology of his current examination, which is not the case.

Work in this direction had started long before that, according to the order, which received a positive statement in this direction in May 2022, almost four months before the fiasco of the event in September 2022. The success rate is catastrophic: 45.4% finally led to an investigation by the commissioner for admission to professions.

However, the Commissioner warns against this in his second progress report, presented this weekOIIQ Resist the temptation to turn to a third-party designed exam that the Order wishes to administer with the NCLEX-RN.

André Gariépy wrote me thatAn exam is more than a technical assessment tool and that he also reflects a vision of the profession against which we aim to assess a candidate’s suitability.

As such, he insists on the importance of having an approach that is consistent with the context of practice and the healthcare network in Quebec. He also warns that if we choose the American option, we will lose Part of the control over the professional standard.

The Commissioner also mentions that such an approach must be carried out in collegiality with all partners involved in the education and health network, which seems to have been overlooked by the CommissionOIIQ.