Health Minister Christian Dubé met with health network leaders in Montreal this morning to take stock of the situation in hospitals.
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He used this meeting to ask managers to go on site to hospitals more often.
“I would like you to go there to see the state of our emergencies,” said Minister Dubé, pointing out that it is “uneven” and that not all CEOs have the reflex to go there.
In an interview with Paul Larocque, the minister makes it clear that the emergency situation a few days before Christmas is extremely difficult.
“We had the perfect storm last year with seasonality, the three viruses. The situation is also difficult, but we have the context of the strikes. Add that to the mix and it’s extremely difficult,” he admits.
Asked about the delays in operations caused by the strike, the minister made it clear that this was unacceptable.
“This is where the discussion this morning with the CEOs is really important. I said, ‘Which of our priorities are non-negotiable?’ There may be delays in an emergency, but treatment cannot be delayed,” he says.
For the minister, there is a need to reflect on essential services given the strike of recent weeks.
“There are complementary activities to emergencies that are covered at 40% and that is serious because it has an impact,” emphasizes the minister, who indicates that emergencies are still covered at 100%.
“When the four to five day strike ended, we fell behind,” Christian Dubé continues.
Law 15
The minister also used the interview to discuss the passage of his Bill 15, which aims to make the healthcare system more efficient.
He assures that this law will change several things in the current system.
“I am thinking, among other things, of those who are waiting for an operation. That's one of my biggest concerns, along with emergencies, is that there's an article in the law that says if there's a “person who hasn't had surgery within a week.” “If we have a reasonable amount of time, we can send them somewhere else.” or even in the private sector,” explains the minister.
He also explains that the CEO of the Santé Québec agency should be appointed by the end of March so that the agency can be launched by the end of the summer.
“I think our network is not healthy. I am very aware of this,” adds Minister Dubé, who wants to draw inspiration from best practices around the world to improve Quebec’s health system.
He sees Bill 15 as another tool to improve the network.