Water shortages at Inukjuak clinic compromise quality of care: Quebec ombudsman
“It is difficult, if not impossible, to comply with basic hygiene measures”
Freshly painted artwork is shown here in front of the CLSC clinic in Inukjuak after it was built in the early 2000s. Now the water storage tanks for the clinic, which handles more than 9,000 visits a year, have become too small and often run dry. (Photo by Jane George)
Nunavik’s Inuulitsivik health centre, recently the subject of employees’ discontent, has another big challenge to face.
That’s the frequent shortage of clean water at its CLSC clinic in Inukjuak, which provides health care and social services to the Hudson Bay community of about 1,800.
Recurrent water shortages led to complaints addressed in a report issued earlier this year by the Quebec ombudsman, which, as Quebec’s watchdog on public services, undertook an investigation.
The ombudsman said the water shortages have compromised the quality of care at the Inukjuak CLSC.
“Interruptions last a few hours to several days. They may occur several times a week, regardless of the time of year,” the ombudsman’s report said.
“Consequently, it is difficult, if not impossible, to comply with basic hygiene measures.”
Overall, the ombudsman’s report was intended to address Inuulitsivik’s ability to provide care and services when there are water shortages.
By the end of September, Inuulitsivik and the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services must show the Quebec ombudsman that they have responded to the recommendations in the ombudsman’s report.
These include, among other things, documenting the frequency, length and causes of water outages and taking action to reduce the frequency of these situations.
The ombudsman also asked Inuulitsivik to improve its contingency efforts to better manage times when there is no water, by forming a crisis management unit to deal with prolonged water outages.
The quality of laundry service at the clinic is among the items that worried the ombudsman, which asked for a laundry service procedure, “in compliance with the applicable standards.”
“The Quebec Ombudsman is concerned about the uncertainty surrounding laundry procedures. There should be directives to bolster the contingency plan,” the report said.
Just taking the laundry somewhere else isn’t a solution.
Using the facilities of other service buildings for laundry poses a problem regarding proper temperature and washing and drying methods, the ombudsman said.
“The potential for contamination of the premises and of the equipment is also worrisome,” the report said.
“The Public Health Agency of Canada indicates that the management of soiled linens must be uniform regardless of the health setting and the risk for infection.”
The ombudsman also asked for a surface hygiene procedure in the contingency plan, which would comply with the applicable standards on cleaning.
And there need to be better disinfecting and sterilizing procedures when disposable devices cannot be used, the ombudsman said.
The contingency plan notes normal sterilization procedures cannot be used when there is no water.
So Inuulitsivik has opted to increase the use of disposable medical devices when there’s no water.
However, reusable devices have to be maintained adequately when there are water shortages, the ombudsman said.
Inuulitsivik also needs to show that the CLSC’s water reserves are only used for the intended purposes.
“During the investigation, people expressed different opinions about the use of the reserve of four 18-litre water containers,” the report said. “Some said that the water could be drunk, while others felt that it should be set aside for care provision (e.g. births.)”
Other recommendations asked for better communication.
“The personnel of the CLSC mentioned that they call municipal services in such cases. However, from Monday to Friday and on weekends, no one answers the calls after 4 PM. When this happens, CLSC personnel try to reach the CLSC coordinator based in Puvirnituq so that this person can contact the mayor. When the mayor is not available, the messages are sent via community radio,” the report said.
The ombudsman’s investigation showed that Inuulitsivik is not to blame for several of the causes of water shortages, such as weather.
But it must take the necessary measures so that storage tanks at the future CLSC facility, now in the planning stage, have sufficient capacity and can meet growing needs, the ombudsman said.
The Quebec ombudsman should pay attention to more than just the CLSC.
Its sad that in the year 2019, the continuous supply of clean water to residents for their basic needs is sub-standard. leaders talk about food security – but what about the basic right as Canadians to clean water.
3rd world conditions come to mind when living in the Kativik Region
This is completely unacceptable in the year 2019 that a country with wealth is allowing this to happen. There is no excuse, every single part of Canada should never have any water shortages and always be able to count on as well safe, quality, clean water to drink and clean in. Sadly Justin Trudeau is more concerned about how many refugees he can let in from other countries while we aren’t even taking care of our own Canadian citizens the way we should be. Charity begins first here at home! A lot of broken promises to the north and while we are at it something also needs to be done about the outrageous prices for food. No excuse for any Canadian anywhere to have to skip meals and go hungry. These are basic human rights violations.