Mr. Speaker, today, May 12, the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the famous lady with the lamp, is International Nurses Day.
I salute Canada's nurses with pride and respect, particularly my colleagues, the 67,000 nurses of Quebec. I recognize their competency, their professionalism, and above all their people skills. They are called upon to share people's suffering and grief, often in difficult, even painful, circumstances.
Nurses are everywhere, in the hospitals, in the CLSCs, in the schools, in the work place, in big cities and in outlying areas, playing a key role in both prevention and cure. The slogan of the Ordre des infirmières et infirmiers du Québec is “Consult a nurse”.
That invitation will no doubt be accepted, because a CROP poll conducted in Quebec at the height of the ice storm crisis ranked nurses first among all professionals in terms of trust. You deserve our trust more than ever, and we thank you.