A Quebec superior court judge won’t issue an injunction to save the Lachine Hospital’s gynecology clinic.
In a decision rendered Tuesday afternoon, the judge said she is allowing the MUHC to transfer the clinic’s services to the LaSalle Hospital, effective immediately.
A group of doctors and patients spent Monday in court fighting to reverse the decision, at least temporarily.
In 2014, the MUHC decided it would concentrate women's health services to LaSalle, while men's health would be handled exclusively at Lachine.
The patients named in the injunction claimed that Lachine made no provision to transfer their files or their charts to new doctors in LaSalle and therefore find themselves without the means for a follow-up with a new doctor. There is a waiting list at the LaSalle Hospital.
“Since I'm seen in Lachine, it's going very well and for me,” said patient Linda Goedike. “You have to be comfortable with a gynecologist, so now to have to go to another place and find another one, it's going to be a problem for me.”
Dr. Paul Saba, who heads the council of physicians, dentists and pharmacists at the Lachine Hospital fought on their behalf.
Saba claimed that out of 1,500 patients, only 73 were automatically transferred to LaSalle. He wanted the injunction to force Lachine and the MUHC to at least properly arrange medical follow-ups at the new location.
“We're not just talking about moving widgets from one place to another,” he said. “We're talking about people and people’s lives. The clinic has been operating for more than 15 years. It's been providing services for women: gynecology and life-saving.”
The MUHC argued in court for the Lachine Hospital, saying they have every right to transfer the services to LaSalle. They say the hospital has already ensured that patients with appointments within the next three months will be followed up, adding that everyone else's charts will be transferred on a priority basis since not all patients require short-term follow-up ups.
