I believe that everybody has a level of trust in their healthcare providers if they’re giving consent to receive care from them. That trust can vary, but there is a general understanding that healthcare professionals are educated, licensed, and employed by reputable organizations or clinics that are monitored and regulated to ensure the safety and wellbeing of patients. This can include nurses, dental care providers, and caregivers in senior homes. Brigitte Cleroux practiced in all three of those areas and treated nearly 1,000 patients as a nurse; however, she was not educated or licensed as a healthcare professional.
Cleroux was arrested in August of 2023 in British Columbia after spending many years practicing in cities across B.C. and the rest of Canada. It’s shocking to hear that a story like this happened so recently and so close to home.
Cleroux has over 65 fraud-related charges. These convictions cover a wide range, from financial theft to identity theft to impersonating a healthcare professional. I’ll begin with 2017, when Cleroux worked in a care home for seniors. While she was working there, she stole more than $23,000 from a 102-year-old resident. Following this, she worked as a dental assistant in Surrey. She had no education, training, or licensing in dental care but landed the job using false documents. During her time at this dental clinic, she stole over $8,000 in cheques from the clinic. Cleroux also practiced under the title of nurse at two medical clinics in Ottawa (one of which was a fertility clinic), View Royal Surgical Centre in Victoria, B.C., and B.C. Women’s Hospital in Vancouver. She also worked at a private clinic providing post-anesthetic care in Victoria before she abruptly resigned after a colleague questioned her method of performing healthcare procedures. She was unqualified and unlicensed for every one of these jobs. She used false documents as well as false references linked to emails she controlled. In order to secure her job as a nurse at B.C. Women’s Hospital, she impersonated a nurse who was on leave at the time and used her name. This nurse has since changed her name after the harm this caused to her professional career and her personal life.
Cleroux had many complaints against her from both patients and colleagues at the clinics she worked at throughout her career. Many described “poor bedside manner,” such as inappropriate or rude behaviour that is completely unacceptable from a healthcare provider. Cleroux performed many medical tasks improperly that left patients with injury, illness, trauma, and insufficient healthcare. She performed many intravenous injections. At least one of her patients was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a direct result of her care.
Cleroux practicing on patients violates their rights to informed consent, as they were misinformed that she was a healthcare professional and did not consent to being treated by someone unlicensed. She was also charged with “assault with a weapon” for the procedures she performed using needles.
Something that specifically stands out to me is Cleroux administering fentanyl for medical purposes on patients. Fentanyl is extremely dangerous when used improperly, and if it is being used by someone who is not a licensed medical professional, then it is absolutely being used improperly. No patients under Cleroux’s care suffered fatal malpractice, but that was a very strong possibility had she not been arrested. One woman who was given fentanyl by Cleroux has proposed a class action lawsuit against B.C. Women’s Hospital.
