Get to know Émilie Marcil, who works as a planning, programming and research agent focused on creating and managing content for the Performance and Statistics Department, also known as the Perfocentre. Ms. Marcil has a passion for what she does, making every effort to provide diverse CIUSSS de l’Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal teams with the clinical and administrative data they need to continuously improve the care and services provided to the community.
Ms. Marcil, please tell us a bit about your professional background.
“In 2010 I graduated from the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec with a degree in international hotel management. Through internships related to that program, I was able to travel to several areas around the world. Then, in 2014, I completed a bachelor’s degree in business administration at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM).
Afterwards, I worked with for the Société du parc Jean-Drapeau. There I worked on business development in the tourism sector. I then moved on to Sid Lee, where I was also focused on business development and communications management. At the same time I earned a graduate diploma in marketing and management from HEC Montréal in 2020.”
And how did you come to join our CIUSSS?
“Like many others, the recent pandemic made me slow down and think about what is really important, but also to think about what I wanted to contribute to society. That’s when I realized that working in a sector more closely tied to my values, in which I could make some small contribution to the well-being of society, is something I would find satisfying. A job posting that was well-aligned with my profile caught my eye. I joined the Quality, Assessment, Performance and Ethics Directorate (QAPED) of our CIUSSS in 2021.”
What are your primary responsibilities?
“One of the things I take care of is managing the COMTL Performance Monitoring Portal, which is a centralized content platform accessible to all employees of our CIUSSS that is used to monitor our institution’s performance from multiple perspectives. It contains reports, dashboards, performance indicators, and more. On a clinical and administrative level, for example, we can generate reports on the occupancy rates in a hospital’s Emergency Department, the number of people within our territory who are waiting for care and services from the Home Care Services Department, or the number of hires during a given period.
Our portal lets managers, physicians, clinicians, and others to access reliable data, which helps with planning and decision-making that ultimately ensure that we can provide the right care, at the right time, in the right place for all of our clienteles.
As for my shared role as a professional coordinator, I support the team with more complex requests from all directorates. It focuses on properly understanding their needs and the relevance of those needs so that we can equip them in the best way possible. The collaboration of our clients is essential for us to understand the particularities of clinical processes or to develop the right performance indicators for coordination command centres, for example.”
What do you enjoy most about your work?
There is a growing excitement surrounding the use data in the healthcare field! The requests that we receive bring new elements into play, which I find very satisfying because I enjoy the in-depth analysis you need to do so that you can propose the best possible solutions in these diverse sectors.
I am also fortunate because our team is creative and dedicated. We are always focused on generating optimal results. My colleagues work hard to develop solid, synergistic relationships with our clients and produce outstanding results while working to very tight deadlines.”
What are your biggest challenges?
The use and understanding of data within our organization is growing rapidly. As a result, we need to make sure the expanding use of this wide array of data is done appropriately, by identifying the value such use adds. “Alongside this growth in the culture of measurement and data we are also increasing our efforts to let others know about our portal’s functionalities. We even offer training on its uses.”
Ms. Marcil also agreed to tell us a little bit about her personal life.
What should we know about you?
“I live in Montréal, but I grew up in Boisbriand. I’ve played soccer for many years, but now only recreationally. During the summer I also enjoy playing tennis on neighbourhood courts.”
What are your favourite ways to relax?
“I like working on my creative side by making small simple objects in clay or ceramics. I also have a very curious palate, so I enjoy cooking and baking experiments to try out new recipes.”
Do you like to travel?
“Absolutely! I am particularly fond of Sicily and its lifestyle, countryside, and cooking. Sweden is another place that is dear to my heart because I lived there for a semester while I was studying at UQAM.”
“To improve an organization’s performance, you need to have an accurate picture of the organization. Every month our team of about 20 people handles over 50 requests that help to bring that picture into focus,” she says. The photo, taken in the Coordination Command Centre of St. Mary’s Hospital Centre, shows Ms. Marcil with Pierre Lemay, Associate Director—Performance and Data Valorization.
“I work remotely quite often, so my cat has become the co-worker I see the most,” jokes Ms. Marcil. The photo shows Ms. Marcil admiring the landscape around Taormina, Sicily.