Positions cut at Quebec help line offering mental health support

Quebec’s billion-dollar health-care deficit has forced hospitals and other institutions to make some cuts, including at a mental health help line.

Quebec’s billion-dollar health-care deficit has forced hospitals and other institutions to make some difficult cuts, including at a helpline for those experiencing mental health problems.

Info-social is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year free of charge. Anyone seeking help for a mental health problem can call 811 and connect to a psychosocial worker.

But now there will be fewer people on the other end of the line at a time when demand for the service has never been higher, according to APTS union representative Leonie Blanchette.

“So, in total, we had about 60 social workers that are working in this program, and now we’re down to 44,” Blanchette said.

The program is run by the West Central Montreal health board but covers the entire island and even some regions in the province. Blanchette says the workers aren’t just there to listen but are trained to identify and intervene in crisis situations.

“The employer is asking them to offer the same quality of service but answer fewer calls,” Blanchette said.

“So, that means that the vulnerable clientele that’s calling to obtain services right now are waiting about an hour to get service. They might wait an extra hour. That means two hours waiting on line to get a service.”

In a statement to CTV News, the health board said the info-social service “must respect the allocated budget and optimize its resources. In this context, the hours of 20 social workers on the recall list have been cut.”

A spokesperson added: “We are doing everything possible to offer those impacted other employment opportunities within our CIUSSS.”

But Blanchette says she knows of at least eight affected workers already looking for new jobs and she says the cuts will only put pressure on other areas of the health-care system.

“We’re cutting in essential services that are helping the population to not go to the emergency room, for example, where they would have to be seen by a doctor or a psychiatrist,” Blanchette explained.