Sentencing for serial nurse impersonator Brigitte Cleroux begins in Vancouver

Serial nurse impersonator Brigitte Cleroux, who has now been caught impersonating a nurse in four provinces, appeared in person in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver Monday for day one of her two-day sentencing hearing.

Cleroux travelled from Ontario, where she's currently serving a seven-year jail sentence for posing as a nurse at two Ottawa clinics. She's also been previously convicted of impersonating a nurse in Quebec and Alberta.

This past summer, the 52-year-old pleaded guilty to 11 charges of theft, impersonation, fraud and assault with a weapon committed in three B.C. cities between 2019 and 2021 — a Surrey dental clinic, B.C. Women's Hospital in Vancouver and Victoria's View Royal Surgical Centre, a private facility specializing in day surgeries. 

The Crown is asking that Cleroux receive an eight-year sentence to be served consecutive to the seven-year Ontario sentence.

According to the agreed statement of facts, Cleroux used the stolen identity and nurse registration number of a real nurse, along with a resumé full of lies, to get hired. She treated close to 1,000 patients at B.C. Women's and the private clinic in Victoria.

The assault-with-a-weapon charges stem from the fact that Cleroux — who has never held a nursing licence or accreditation — injected patients with a needle.

Twenty-five women have submitted victim impact statements, many of them who had gynecological procedures with Cleroux, a member of the care team. A handful read their statements in court, speaking of the trauma they have suffered along with the destruction of their trust in the medical system.

The names of the victims and the name of the nurse whose identity Cleroux stole are now protected by a publication ban.

Cleroux was previously jailed for five years for fraud and impersonation in Alberta and was still serving parole on those convictions when she started working as a dental assistant in Surrey. 

On her way out the door, she stole five of the dentist's cheques, forging his signature on amounts totalling $8,000.

Cleroux was hired as a full-time general duty nurse at B.C. Women's Hospital in June 2020.

Cleroux manipulated employer reference checks

In addition to claiming credentials as a certified flight nurse and a registered nurse anesthetist, Cleroux also manipulated the application process so her new employer wound up unwittingly seeking references from email addresses that she controlled.

Posing as a former boss, Cleroux gave herself "five out of five on a range of assessment categories," court documents state.

Cleroux's position at B.C. Women's Hospital involved administering patients drugs like fentanyl and hydromorphone and monitoring their vital signs while under anesthetic.

Even as she worked that job, Cleroux moonlighted from October to November 2020 at Victoria's private surgical clinic.

However, multiple reports about her "lack of professionalism, her poor nursing skills, and her bedside manner" led to Cleroux's rapid resignation from that position.

Unluckily for patients at B.C. Women's Hospital, she still had her job there to fall back on. Within months, Cleroux found herself the subject of warnings about her professional conduct, but it wasn't until June 2021 that she was placed on leave after complaints from patients and staff.

The agreed statement of facts says the hospital twigged to Cleroux's deception, terminating her employment on the same day the fake nurse announced her resignation.

Cleroux's defence will deliver sentencing submissions to the court on Tuesday.