Proud to be part of the MUHC

“What I like the most is making the floor shiny and clean so new patients feel comfortable when they arrive,” says Kenny Senecal, who has been a housekeeper at the Lachine Hospital for “21 years and four months” and who is in charge of four departments on the sixth floor: Day Surgery, Cataract Surgery, Colonoscopy and Gynecology.”

“Housekeeping is not a widely recognized occupation,” says Kenny. “But it’s essential in a hospital to prevent the spread of infections and for the comfort of patients. Every day, I disinfect almost 25 stretchers. After a patient leaves, I must also disinfect everything they touched in the room, the switch, the phone, the edges of windows, etc. Maintenance is more difficult in winter, and I have to wash the floor two or three times to keep it spotless. I have to polish it from time to time as well.”

Kenny takes the same care with patients and visitors. “Courtesy and kindness contribute to our image.”

He believes the integration of the Lachine Hospital and the Camille-Lefebvre Long-term-care Centre with the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) has been beneficial. “I’m proud to be part of the MUHC family.”

In fact, Kenny’s ties with the hospital go beyond the professional. “I was born here, on the same floor where I now work! In the 60s and 70s, it was a nursery,” he says with amusement.

The sixth floor is impeccably maintained. Its gleaming floors elicit glowing praise and sometimes surprising comments. “Last year, the director of Hôpital de Saint-Eustache was passing through, and he tried to recruit me,” says Kenny with a smile. “But I’m a Lachine guy, and I’ll stay at Lachine forever. In 15 years, I’ll hang up my mop here.”