For Fabienne Germeil, it’s all about making a difference. Every milestone in her career can be traced back to a simple decision – where could she have the greatest impact? These days, as Director of the Clinical Partnership Office (CPO) at the Ingram School of Nursing, her impact is felt far and wide.
Germeil was just 17 years old when she started working part-time as a beneficiary attendant at a long-term care facility and 19 when she obtained her DEC (diplôme d’études collégiales) in nursing. Healthcare had always been a calling, with family members, including her father, serving as role models. “I actually wanted to be a pediatrician. It was my father who suggested that I study nursing in CEGEP to get a feel for healthcare and then determine next steps. I fell in love with nursing and never looked back.”
Graduating in the 1990s just as the Quebec government was offering buyout packages to thousands of nurses, Germeil was fortunate to be among the minority of her cohort to find work. Hired by a nursing agency, she enjoyed the variety of the work but longed for a more permanent position in geriatrics.
Once the government began funding nursing positions again, Fabienne was hired as a nurse in a long-term care facility. Within two years, she was offered a position as Nursing Coordinator. Worried about taking on so much responsibility at such a young age, she turned to her parents for advice. “They told me to go for it. And that’s when I discovered that I loved management just as much as I loved nursing.”
As her career progressed, Germeil was frequently sought after for her ability to rally people around unit goals, solve problems and lead the development of new programs. At the Jewish General Hospital (JGH) where she worked for 18 years, she served as Team Leader in the Neurosurgery-Cardiac Unit, and Head Nurse of the neurology and neurosurgery inpatient unit. When the government tapped the JGH to become a Secondary Stroke Centre, she co-led the development of this unique program, working with neurologists in the field and partnering with local rehabilitation centres.
While serving as Associate Nursing Director at the CIUSSS de l’Ouest de l’Ile de Montréal, Germeil began exploring the idea of teaching at ɬ. From the moment she taught her first course in Professional Issues in Nursing in the winter of 2024, she was hooked.
Encouraged to apply for the position of Director of the CPO, Germeil balked at first. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized that this position would allow her to have the change she was looking for while having a positive impact on the nursing profession. “The clinical setting is a reality check for students. It’s where they practice interpersonal and interprofessional skills, where they learn what professionalism means – acting respectfully, being accountable,” she notes.
Each semester, including a six-week summer session, the CPO places anywhere from 200 to 400 students in clinical and community settings in and beyond the Greater Montreal area. Additional responsibilities of the CPO include identifying and recruiting new sites as needed, and interfacing with clinical partners, faculty and students to solve problems that arise on specific units.
Germeil’s first order of business was to shore up the CPO’s staffing and build a cohesive team. Other immediate challenges included fostering relationships with key clinical partners, establishing proactive processes for coordinating student placements, and responding to the needs of various stakeholders.
Today, the CPO is comprised of Academic Associates Crystal Beaudin, Helen Martin, Louise Murray, Tania Perron, and Rosanna Zappavigna, as well as Administrative Coordinators Aleksandar Dordevic and Melanie Kakuli. “I am so grateful to my amazing team for going above and beyond what is expected of them as we work towards our common goal of creating great student learning experiences,” says Germeil. She is equally appreciative of faculty colleagues who continue to be generous with their time, effort, support and collaboration, and to the clinical partners and community organizations who welcome and train ɬ Nursing students.
Germeil is particularly proud of her team’s culture of quality improvement. With a number of ongoing quality assurance projects based on LEAN Six Sigma principles underway, the goal is to shift from reactive firefighting to proactive forecasting. “We are working hard to streamline our processes, and adapt both to economic realities facing the university and the many changes in the broader healthcare landscape,” concludes Germeil.
