Emergency room waiting times can still be very long and according to Quebec's Health Commissioner there is risk the elderly could fall through the cracks.
Robert Salois is concerned about the vast majority of emergency room visits being made by people who were not very sick.
He said that last year most visits throughout the province were made by those who could have gone to a family doctor or a clinic.
A clogging of the system means that some patients receive less than excellent care.
Commissioner Salois said the provincial government is worried about the elderly who may not have access to family doctors and clinics and so end up in the emergency room.
"Elderly people are very present, they present a very important preoccupation for the emergency. We're not treating them very well because they spend very long time on stretchers, we have to find different ways to deal with them," said Salois.
He said the province is analyzing the Jewish General Hospital as a model for other health care facilities.
At the Jewish, staff use computers to immediately book appointments for the elderly who need follow-up visits before they leave the hospital.
