Meet Dave Blondeau, a social worker who wears many hats and who is part of the Mental Health and Addiction Programs General Social Services Department at the Montréal West Island CIUSSS. It is he who, among other things, oversees the clinical coordination of the new frontline psychosocial intervention team in our territory. This team goes out into the field to meet with individuals who are unhoused, at risk of being unhoused or facing serious socioeconomic insecurity.
Monsieur Blondeau, can you talk to us about your career path?
“I graduated from Cégep François Xavier-Garneau in Québec City, with a diploma in delinquency intervention techniques, in 1994. A few months later, I moved to Montréal to complete a certificate in creative writing at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM).
At the same time, I landed a job as a youth worker in a youth home in Pointe-Saint-Charles. Two years later, in December 1998, after meeting a streetworker who worked with Travail de rue/Action communautaire (TRAC), I joined the organization and became a streetworker. I was a frontline worker and intervened in the field. After nine years of working in Saint-Henri and Pointe-Saint-Charles, I became a clinical coordinator with TRAC, a role I held for 14 years.
I went back to school part-time, from 2008 to 2015, to complete a bachelor’s degree in social work at UQAM.”
And how did you end up joining our CIUSSS?
“I joined the Montréal West Island CIUSSS purely by happenstance in September 2021, after 25 years of working in a community setting. I was self-reflecting and thinking about making a career change when Louise Beauchesne, a head hunter for the CIUSSS, reached out to me. She was someone I knew quite well, as she had been the manager of the Frontline Adult Mental Health Program for Dorval-Lachine-LaSalle when TRAC was introducing street work in Lachine.”
What are your main functions?
“Clinical support is what I consider to be my greatest responsibility, in other words, meeting with my teammates. Our field of intervention forces us to constantly work on ourselves, so these meetings are key not only to good practice but also to the positive mental health of the team. I also work closely with those in charge of various programs to tailor our interventions to the needs of the individual and not the other way around.
Another aspect of my job involves maintaining close ties with our partners, whether community groups, neighbourhood and borough police officers, or others. Last but not least, I also advise our organization’s stakeholders, when needed.”
What do you love most about your job?
“I love the teamwork aspect of intervention work and the energy required to adjust from one person to another. I am very driven when I encounter complex situations for which I don’t have an immediate solution. Persons who are unhoused have needs that must be brought to light. They are citizens in their own right and are also entitled to health care and social services. That’s why we are focussed on enhancing the network of resources for these individuals.
I also have the added benefit of being able to count on a team that is passionate, extremely committed and whose members are ready to be challenged, as our interventions don’t always take place in the most comfortable of settings.”
What are some of the key challenges you face?
“Due in large part to the housing crisis and inflation, housing is, without a doubt, our greatest challenge. We are also seeing a growing number of seniors who have never experienced episodic homelessness, but who are now unable to find housing. You know, spending just a single day on the streets can have serious repercussions. Without a fixed address, stable access to health care and social services becomes much more difficult.
As a team, we consider ourselves generalists when it comes to the many social issues affecting those we work with. Even though we interact with people ranging in age from 14 to 100, we avoid categorizing them, which allows us to do away with many constraints.
In short, our work, by its very nature, is a constant challenge. Thankfully, we thrive on complex situations!”
Mr. Blondeau kindly agreed to share some aspects of her personal life with us……
Tell us a little about yourself…
“While I’m originally from Cap-Rouge, a suburb of Québec City, I’ve been living in Montréal’s Villeray district for quite some time. My spouse Anita and I are the proud parents of Luca, our 15-year-old son.”
What do you do to unwind?
“I’m a serious music lover, of jazz in particular. My most prized possession is my 1968 Marantz stereo system, which took me years to find!
I’m also passionate about two sports, namely hockey and golf. I spent years playing ice hockey, but now play floor hockey. As for golf, I caught the bug about fifteen years ago.
Lastly, I’ve been friends with the same group of eight people for over 30 years. We get together for a friendly night of poker at least once a month.”
“In street work, it is said that “our fears, our biases and our principles shape our perceptions,ʺ says this month’s featured employee who is also the professional coordinator of the Local Mental Health Scouting Network. Pictured here are Mr. Blondeau, chatting with Charlotte Desrochers, Social Worker – West Island, on the left and Alexandra Martel, Social Worker – Dorval-Lachine-LaSalle, on the right.
A lovely group photo of the frontline psychosocial intervention team! From left to right: Dave Blondeau; Joseph Christopher Murat, Criminologist – MWI; Alexandra Martel, Social Worker – Dorval-Lachine-LaSalle; Marie-Ève Lavigne, Manager, General Social Services and Frontline Psychosocial Intervention Services; Valérie Boucher, Criminologist – DLL; Jocy Kalinijabo, Human Relations Officer – Local Mental Health Scouting Network; Charlotte Desrochers, Social Worker – West Island; Stéfanie Lavoie, Social Worker – RLESP; Alexia Rancourt, Administrative Officer, General Social Services and Frontline Psychosocial Intervention Services; Cindy Ménard, Human Relations Officer – RLESP.
Missing from photo: Jean-Alex Joseph, Social Worker – DLL