Finding balance to better care for others
Some life paths can’t be explained by professional choices alone. They are rooted in experiences that profoundly shape the way we see the world.
For Émilie Grenier, Assistant Clinical Care Coordinator at Aux trois sentiers, everything changed eight years ago.
At 30, she lost her father to stage 4 glioblastoma. A sudden, devastating diagnosis that came almost without warning. In just a few weeks—barely a month and a half—everything accelerated: the first signs of confusion, the hospital, the discovery of the tumor, an urgent return to France, treatments that ultimately did not have the hoped-for effect.
“He hadn’t even retired yet.”
During this ordeal, Émilie witnessed the support provided by the palliative care team—a deeply meaningful presence that left a lasting impression.
That is when, gently but clearly, the desire to give back began to take shape.
A few months later, life led her elsewhere. After spending time in Australia, where she worked as a school nurse at a French high school in Sydney, Émilie decided to come to Québec on a working holiday permit. A fresh start, far from straightforward.
She began the process of having her credentials recognized by the Ordre des infirmières et infirmiers du Québec: compiling documentation, providing certifications, and completing a demanding 75-day clinical placement.
She persevered.
At a job fair, a chance encounter led her to the CHUM, where she would work for five years.
She first joined the palliative care unit, spending two and a half years on evening shifts—an environment where the intensity of care meets the intimacy of life’s final moments. She then moved to the CHUM’s oncology research centre (phases 1 and 2), where she worked for three years.
These experiences shaped her clinical perspective. She developed a keen ability to observe, anticipate, and quickly identify signs, needs, and challenges—an invaluable expertise built over 16 years of nursing practice across France, Réunion Island, Australia, and Québec.
Then came another turning point.
Through a colleague at the CHUM, she heard about Aux trois sentiers. The project immediately resonated with her: returning to palliative care, contributing to something new, helping build something meaningful—while expanding her role into coordination and management.
She took the leap.
“A leap into the unknown,” as she puts it.
Today, Émilie is one of the people who structure and support clinical work on a daily basis. She brings rigor, sensitivity, and a nuanced understanding of frontline realities—for both patients and the care team.
Having lived in Québec for nearly seven years, she has built a new life here. While she misses her family and friends, she has created new connections and a sense of belonging.
Yoga is one of them.
Discovered more deeply in Australia, it has become much more than a practice: an essential resource. She trained as a yoga teacher in 2019 and has recently continued her training in mat and reformer Pilates.
In a field where compassion fatigue is very real, yoga offers her a way to breathe.
A pause. A way to ground herself, to reconnect, to clear her mind so she can return fully present.
“It’s a breath of fresh air—a release valve. It helps me move from one patient to the next.”
She finds a precious balance between two worlds that, in their own way, both care for others.
Because working in palliative care can be heavy at times. It means bearing witness to moments of rare intensity, for both patients and their loved ones. It also comes with immense responsibility: to offer the very best, every single day, at a time when everything matters.
In that context, knowing when to pause becomes essential.
For Émilie, it is within this movement—between deep commitment and the ability to recharge—that the key lies.
Stepping away for a moment, in order to be more fully present when it matters most.
