Dube says he is '100% in agreement' with the partial closure of the Senneterre emergency room
Health Minister Christian Dubé said he is "100% in agreement" with the partial closure of the emergency room in Senneterre, in the northwestern Quebec region of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, on Monday.
The health minister addressed the issue of the shortage of caregivers in a press scrum in Malartic, Que. on Friday afternoon.
He said that the reduction of service hours in Senneterre was a temporary solution, while 250 nurses were recruited in the region.
Dubé also encouraged all parties to "put some water in their wine" to try to find other innovative solutions.
"There is hope," he said, saying he sensed a determination in the region to get out of this "very serious" situation.
As of Monday, the Senneterre emergency room will only be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Outside of these hours, patients will have to go to Val-d'Or or Amos.
On Friday, Dubé reiterated his goal of recruiting some 4,000 nurses across the network through bonuses.
He acknowledged that money alone would not be enough to attract the workforce and that working conditions had to be improved.
The day before, the Parti Québécois had called for Dubé's personal intervention to ensure that all services in Senneterre were maintained.
Its parliamentary leader, Joël Arseneau, argued that the reduction in services endangered the health and safety of the population, in addition to further clogging other emergency rooms in the region.
"It's applicable as of Monday," said Dubé on Friday. "I agree 100% with the solution that is there, but I will ask the teams to continue working to find solutions."
-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Oct. 15, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.