Christian Dubé misses all his objectives, insists André Fortin

Photo: Jacques Boissinot The Canadian Press Liberal health critic André Fortin

Caroline Plante – The Canadian Press in Quebec City

Published and updated on October 23

• Quebec City

Prime Minister François Legault must call his Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, to order, who is missing all his objectives, believes the Liberal health spokesperson, André Fortin.

At a press briefing at the National Assembly on Wednesday, Mr. Fortin also deplored the “absence” of Minister Dubé, who now leaves it to the Santé Québec agency, which he created, to answer journalists’ questions.

More than 10,000 Quebecers have been waiting for an operation for over a year, the daily newspaper La Presse reported on Wednesday.

However, in May 2023, having missed his 2021 and 2022 targets, Mr. Dubé presented a third catch-up surgery plan that was to reduce the number of patients waiting for surgery for over a year to 2,500 by December 31. 2024.

The vice-president of the Fédération des médecins spécialisé du Québec (FMSQ), Serge Legault, told La Presse that there is “no chance” that the target of 2,500 will be reached in December, because operating rooms are not operating at maximum capacity.

According to Santé Québec, operating rooms remain closed due to a lack of staff, such as respiratory therapists, clinical nurses, nursing assistants and anesthesiologists.

What is Quebec doing to recruit and retain health care workers, André Fortin asked Wednesday, noting that the governments of Ontario and New Brunswick are much more “aggressive” in recruiting.

Ontario officials are even recruiting Quebec staff in the parking lots of health care facilities, he said.

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“It’s [Christian Dubé] who must justify his failures to Quebecers. “It is not Santé Québec, barely formed, not even launched, which must justify the failures of the Minister of Health,” denounced Mr. Fortin.

“We are asking the Prime Minister to look at his minister's record and then find a way to change the results, because Quebecers are not getting value for their money. The minister's 'job' is to improve the results and he fails every time,” he added.

“It didn't take long for Mr. Dubé to take his big problems, then send them to Santé Québec, then say: 'Deal with it',” also pointed out the spokesperson for Québec solidaire en santé, Vincent Marissal.

Joël Arseneau, of the Parti Québécois, added: “The list is not getting any shorter […] and now, the worst thing is that now he is no longer answering questions; it is Santé Québec, which is not yet operational. And the minister backs out.”

The FMSQ is taking the population hostage, retorts Dubé

The issue of access to health care within medically acceptable time frames was the subject of a heated debate in the House on Wednesday.

Infuriated, Minister Dubé first declared that he no longer had any respect for André Fortin. Then, he blamed the FMSQ, with which he is negotiating a new framework agreement and which is taking the population “hostage,” according to him.

François Legault also jumped into the fray, stating that “specialist doctors can do more in surgeries.”

“It is very clear that the FMSQ, at this point, is putting negotiation into play,” stated Mr. Dubé. According to him, $400 million is available from the doctors' side for catching up on surgeries.

“The FMSQ, and I just want to be sure that's not what they're saying, but yesterday I was called to be told that maybe the $400 million wouldn't be available until the negotiations are over.”

“I'm talking about union negotiation tactics to hold the population hostage so that the negotiations move forward according to them.”

“I'm really looking forward to hearing [FMSQ president] Vincent Oliva clarify to Quebecers that this money is available now so that we can open the operating rooms,” he said.

Dr. Oliva assured on the social network X that “specialist doctors are working every day to reduce the waiting lists.” “The money is available and must be used now,” he wrote.

Later, in a press scrum, Treasury Board President Sonia LeBel did not want to talk about a “hostage-taking,” as her colleague Dubé had done.

“There is a project on the table that allows us to come and provide nurses to assist with surgeries. This project is the subject of an agreement and, as far as I am concerned, it will go ahead,” she said.

André Fortin accused Minister Dubé of “hiding” behind negotiations with nurses and doctors to explain the delay in catching up on surgeries.