Lakeshore Hospital Battles Bacterial Outbreak

From The CBC:

A Montreal-area hospital has imposed some quarantine measures after an outbreak of antibiotic-resistant bacteria was reported in one of its wings.

Access to patients at the Lakeshore Hospital in Pointe-Claire is restricted until Jan. 5 because of several cases of Vancomycin-resistant enterococci, known as VRE.

Seven patients on the fourth-floor west wing have developed a VRE infection, hospital officials said.

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My Comment: A common problem in a good number of our hospitals. My father's best friend died in Verdun General 6 years ago because of this type of outbreak .... the operation was a success for him, but the infection is what killed him.

Quebec Launches Bar-Coded Medicare Cards

The Quebec health insurance board is to launch a new "smart" card for valid health care users, starting in January 2010. Photograph by: Wikipedia

From The Montreal Gazette:

MONTREAL - The Quebec health insurance board is to launch a new "smart" card for valid health care users, starting in January 2010.

The new card, to be phased in over a period of four years, will have a bar code providing the individual's Medicare number.

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Doctors Resign En Masse Over Uranium Exploration

From The Montreal Gazette:

MONTREAL - Twenty doctors have handed in their resignations at the Centre hospitalier régional de Sept-Îles, LCN reports.

In an open letter addressed to Quebec Health Minister Yves Bolduc, the physicians say they have quit, as a group, to protest plans to build an uranium mine on the North Shore.

The protest comes on the heels of the introduction new government mining legislation, which does not impose a moratorium on uranium exploitation in Quebec.

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Update: Twenty Quebec doctors quit over construction of uranium mine in remote town -- CTV

My Comment: I love Sept-Iles. Its isolation and frontier atmosphere has always been an attraction to me .... especially seeing the ships that pass through on their way into the Atlantic ocean.

This resignation of 20 doctors will severely impact the region .... and to replace them will take a very long time.

Wait Times In Quebec Hospitals Getting Better

Canadians looking to undergo surgery can expect to wait a total of 113 days in 2009, a slight improvement over last year, a national health-care survey has found. Photograph by: File, CNS

Canadians Face 16-Week Wait For Surgery: Report -- Montreal Gazette

Canadians looking to undergo surgery can expect to wait a total of 113 days in 2009, a slight improvement over last year, a national health-care survey has found.

The Fraser Institute’s annual report on hospital wait times found that the median wait time for Canadians seeking surgical or other therapeutic treatment is 16.1 weeks in 2009, down from 2008’s 17.3 weeks.

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Update: Wait times drop in Quebec hospitals in 2009: report -- CTV

My Comment: A 16 week wait time is no great improvement.

Will Euthanasia Be Permitted in Quebec?

Photo: The poll results were released by the president of the Quebec Federation of Medical Specialists, Dr. Gaétan Barrette. (CBC)

Quebec Specialists Support Legalizing Euthanasia -- CBC

A majority of Quebec's medical specialists are in favour of legalizing euthanasia and believe the public also supports the idea, according to an Ipsos Descarie poll released Tuesday.

Of 2,025 medical specialists who answered a poll on the subject, 75 per cent said they were "certainly" or "probably" in favour of legalizing euthanasia, as long as the practice were strictly regulated.

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Update: Most Quebec MDs in favour of legalized euthanasia: survey -- Montreal Gazette

My Comment: Mistakes are going to be made .... who arethey kidding.

Quebec Nurses Want Whoesale Swine-Flu Vaccine

As it stands now, nurses must purchase all their vaccines from the province's pharmacists, which they say that is both costly and impractical.

From CTV:

The Quebec Order of Nurses says it wants private nurses to have the right to buy vaccine doses directly from the manufacturer.

The group says nurses are paying excessive prices for vaccines, including swine-flu inoculations, and that the costs are being passed onto clients.

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My Comment: One more reason why Quebec nurses are moving out of the Province.

New Hospital For Western Sector Off Tip Of Montreal?

Lakeshore General Hospital

From CJAD:

More and more people are moving out to the sector off the western tip of Montreal.

And Quebec's health minister says they need more healthcare services.

That could possibly mean a new hospital.

Quebec health minister Yves Bolduc says he's ordered studies on possibly building a hospital in the region.

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Soldiers Isolated In Quebec Hospital

A Canadian soldier in Afghanistan. Three soldiers recently returned from Afghanistan with a drug-resistant bacteria are being treated in a Quebec City hospital. Photograph by: Stefano Rellandini/Reuters, np

From The Montreal Gazette:

QUEBEC — Three soldiers recently returned from Afghanistan with a drug-resistant bacteria are being treated in a Quebec City hospital.

The soldiers are in stable condition at L'Hopital de l'Enfant-Jesus but they have been isolated to prevent the spread of Acinetobacter Baumannii — a bacteria often found in military field hospitals.

"There is nothing to be worried about and this bacteria does not pose a threat for the population," hospital spokeswoman Genevieve Dupuis said Thursday.

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Update #1: 3 Canadian soldiers hospitalized with bacteria -- CTV

Update #2: 3 soldiers hospitalized in Quebec for superbug -- CBC

Doctors' Debate Opens Door To Private Delivery Of Health Care

As part of a plan to create a “blueprint” to transform this country’s health-care system, the Canadian Medical Association approved a resolution to implore governments and health authorities to “examine internal market mechanisms, which could include a role for the private sector, in the delivery of publicly funded health care in Canada.” Photograph by: John Guillemin, Bloomberg

From The Montreal Gazette:

SASKATOON — After heated debate about the slippery slope of pursuing private health care, Canadian doctors voted Tuesday to push governments to look more closely at allowing competition for public health dollars.

As part of a plan to create a "blueprint" to transform this country's health-care system, the Canadian Medical Association approved a resolution to implore governments and health authorities to "examine internal market mechanisms, which could include a role for the private sector, in the delivery of publicly funded health care in Canada."

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My Comment: Canada's health care system needs a burst of innovation and competition. The present government structure is stagnating the system .... which in turn is hurting the care that we give to those who need it in this country. Permitting private care is one step to shake a system that badly needs to be shaken.

Euthanasia In Quebec

MONTREAL, QUE: AUGUST 14, 2009 -- Palliative care doctor Patrick Vinay at the Notre Dame hospital palliative care ward Friday, August 14, 2009 in Montreal. About 75% of Quebecers support the move by the Quebec College of Physicians to legalize euthanasia. End-of-life experts, however, say support is coming from healthy people. Many of the dying sick are hanging on to life until the last breath. Photograph by: John Kenney, The Gazette

Euthanasia Is Already Being Practised, Doctor Says -- Montreal Gazette

'We have to stop hiding our heads in the sand'

"The last enemy to be destroyed is death."

1 Corinthians 15:26

Better care for the terminally ill, the right to die with dignity, the desire to be in control at the end of one's life - on all these points, Canada's father of palliative care, Dr. Balfour Mount, sides with euthanasia advocates.

However, the great divide lies in the solutions to end-of-life issues, said Mount, founding director of the Royal Victoria Hospital palliative care service and emeritus professor of medicine at McGill University.

"Should there be medical assistance for the dying? Absolutely," he said.

"These are the sickest people in our health-care system."

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Update: A matter of life and death -- Montreal Gazette

My Comment: My father had a stroke in 1997. He was bedridden for 8 long years .... unable to talk .... paralyzed on his right side. It was very difficult for all of us .... but we endured and when my father passed away .... as I told my mother .... we are now free.

State Of Health Care In Quebec: 3 Examples

Montreal General Hospital

Big Isotope Bills Pile Up For Hospitals -- CBC

Canadian doctors opened their mail last week and found bills up to $30,000 higher than usual from isotope suppliers who have come to collect after hiking their prices in the spring.

The higher costs came about the same time Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. shut down its aging reactor at Chalk River, Ont., sparking a worldwide medical isotope shortage.

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Four Die In Sorel Hospital After C Difficile Outbreak -- CTV

Four people at Sacre Coeur Hospital in Sorel have died in the past two months following a C. difficile outbreak, said hospital officials.

While officials can't confirm C. difficile was the cause of their deaths, it was certainly a contributing factor, say doctors in the hospital, 85 kilometres northeast of Montreal.

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New Shriners Hospital On Hold -- Montreal Gazette

Money woes; Construction won't start 'until economy turns around'

Construction of a new Shriners Hospital for Children in Montreal has been "put on hold" as the fraternal organization struggles with a multibillion-dollar drop in its endowment fund, The Gazette has learned.

Gene Bracewell, the long-time imperial treasurer of the Shriners, said yesterday the organization is under pressure to cut costs and as a result does not foresee any new construction.

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Bill 34 Threatens Morgentaler Abortion Clinic

The operating room at Montreal's Morgentaler clinic. Opened in 1969, Canada's first abortion clinic might have to shut down as early as next month because of new Bill 34 guidelines. Photograph by: Dave Sidaway, The Gazette

From The Montreal Gazette:

Hospitals and CLSCs would step in: agency.

MONTREAL – Opened illegally in Montreal in 1969, Dr. Henry Morgentaler’s first abortion clinic could shut down as early as next month.

The threat of closing is not coming from anti-abortion protesters, who have targeted the clinic for 40 years, but from a Quebec law that will govern how special medical clinics provide services.

“It’s terribly sad. We still have to fight,” physician Francine Léger, the clinic’s interim director, said Monday.

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Update: New abortion law may force closure of private clinics -- CTV

Quebec Might Extend Bill 34 Deadline For Private Abortion Clinics

Quebec Health Minister Yves Bolduc, seen with Premier Jean Charest during 2008 National Assembly, says he's "ready to look at" extending the Sept. 30 deadline for private abortion clinics to get up to code with new Bill 34 guidelines. Photograph by: The Gazette, file photo

From The Montreal Gazette:

'We do not want in any way to limit access to abortion in Quebec,' Health Minister Yves Bolduc says.

STE. THÉRÈSE – Quebec Health Minister Yves Bolduc has opened the door to extending a Sept. 30 deadline for private abortion clinics to better equip themselves based on a new set of government norms.

With one Montreal clinic – L’Alternative – threatening to close down and others scrambling to adjust to the new rules, Bolduc said he does not want women’s access to abortions in any way compromised because of the new system. If necessary, the public system will take up the slack.

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Isotope Shortage Delaying Quebec Cancer Tests For 'Weeks'

Lab technician Sacha Des Serres prepares a dose of medical isotopes at Lantheus Medical Imaging. A single dose is no more radioactive than a chest X-ray. Photograph by: John Mahoney, The Gazette

From The Montreal Gazette:

As Canada’s medical isotope shortage enters its fourth month, Quebec cancer patients in need of urgent diagnoses are waiting weeks for an exam, the province’s nuclear-medicine technologists warned Thursday.

“Cancer cases are prioritized but even those cases judged urgent have to wait for several weeks before exams are done,” said Dominique Verreault, president of the Alliance du personnel professionel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux.

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Isotope Setback For Quebec Hospitals

From The CBC:

Quebec hospitals were dealt another setback in their attempts to deal with the shortage of medical isotopes Monday when the cyclotron at Sherbrooke University Hospital was shut down for maintenance.

Many hospitals have been using the sodium fluoride isotopes produced by the cyclotron to pick up some of the slack from the lack of radioactive medical isotopes.

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More Quebec Health Care Horror Stories

The Royal Victoria Hospital has vowed to investigate a forced do-it-yourself delivery that occured when neither a nurse nor a doctor were available. Photograph by: Pierre Obendrauf, Gazette file photo.

More Miscarriage Horror Stories -- The Montreal Gazette

The plight of a Montreal woman who miscarried alone, scared and helpless at the Royal Victoria Hospital has struck a chord with Gazette readers.

Many responded on the Web and by email with sympathy and outrage. Some have come forward with their own stories of similar harrowing experiences in Montreal area hospitals.

The common perception is that there's no place for compassion in ultra-busy and understaffed emergency rooms.

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Que. Physicians' Move May Heat Up Right-To-Die Debate

Canada’s continuing debate on the right to die, prodded by court cases and proposed legislation, seems to be heading for a new round this fall according to a report the Quebec College of Physicians may recommend Canada’s Criminal Code be revised to permit a form of medical euthanasia in strictly controlled circumstances. Photograph by: Spencer Platt, Getty Images

From The Montreal Gazette:

Canada's continuing debate on the right to die, prodded by court cases and proposed legislation, seems to be heading for a new round this fall according to a report the Quebec College of Physicians may recommend Canada's Criminal Code be revised to permit a form of medical euthanasia in strictly controlled circumstances.

A right-to-die private member's bill sponsored by Bloc Quebecois MP Francine Lalonde is also due for debate, leaving both sides of the contentious issue gearing for a busy fall.

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$5.4 M Settlement For Breast-Cancer Wait Times

From CTV News:

A number of Quebec breast-cancer patients have reached an out-of-court settlement with 12 hospitals after they waited more than three months for breast-cancer chemotherapy.

The hospitals reached the $5.4 million deal in May with a group of patients led by Anahit Cilinger, who had filed the suit back in 2004, Cilinger's law firm said in a news release on Monday.

The settlement cuts short a proceeding that began on May 6 in Quebec Superior Court, said the firm, Marchand Melancon Forget.

As many as 4,000 patients could be eligible for compensation, lawyer Michel Savonitto told ctvmontreal.ca.

"We're really satisfied because we started the class action eight years ago," he said in an interview.

"I think it's a good settlement for the class (action) members."

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911. Please Hold

According to Urgences Sante, most drivers don't know what to do when they see an ambulance in the rear view mirror. Photograph by: Gazette File Photo, Gazette File Photo

From The Montreal Gazette:

Man with appendicitis waits six hours for ambulance.

A Montreal man, bed-ridden with acute appendicitis, waited six hours for an ambulance Thursday after calling 911 four times, raising concerns the city's emergency-response service is putting patients at risk.

Even as 57-year-old Jean-Marc Gagné lay begging to be taken to an emergency room, more than half of Montreal's fleet of ambulances sat idle at hospitals around the city.

Urgences Santé has lots of ambulances but not enough paramedics to fill them, according to the Montreal agency's chief of operations, Benoît Garneau.

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Isotope Shortage Looms

Radioisotopes, which are necessary for diagnosing diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and bone ailments, are seen in this undated photo.

From CTV News:

The McGill University Health Centre says it's dealing with a shortage of a key diagnostic tool that's in short supply because of maintenance problems at an aging nuclear facility near Ottawa.

Medical isotopes are so scarce that the MUHC is prioritizing testing schedules by making sure that the most critical cases are seen first.

Smaller Canadian hospitals could run out of the isotopes altogether by Thursday and will be forced to cancel diagnostic scans. So far the English Montreal hospital network is still receiving its deliveries, Ian Popple, spokesman for the MUHC, told CTV News on Wednesday.

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