As in a restaurant or a hotel, Quebecers will be able to evaluate their experience in the health network thanks to a new tool put in place by the government to survey patient satisfaction. It is, according to the opposition, a “smoke show”.
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Patients will be able to give their opinion on the waiting time or the way in which they were received and treated.
For the moment, four institutions are participating in this pilot project, namely the CHU Sainte-Justine, the Integrated University Health and Social Services Center of the East-of-the-Island of Montreal, the Integrated Health Center and social services of the Côte-Nord and the integrated university health and social services center of Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean. The government’s objective is to gradually extend this approach across the province.
What will this data teach the government that it doesn’t already know?
“What we want is to be able to compare establishments, replied the Minister of Health, Christian Dubé. But the biggest benefit is going to be measuring the improvement. Basically, what is the point of measuring, is to see how we can change, improve things.
The first results will be revealed from March 21 when the government adds this indicator to its dashboard on the performance of the health network available online.
“Smoke Show”
“It’s a smoke show, reacted Liberal MP Jennifer Maccarone, in a press briefing Thursday morning.
“It’s going to be important to make sure that we have professionals to provide care because we have very long waiting lists and then citizens who are suffering because they don’t have access to care”, she then affirmed.
The feeling is the same on the side of Québec solidaire. Highlighting Minister Dubé’s “little bit of a techie side”, MP Vincent Marrissal argued that this “new gadget will not give any more nurses for Quebec patients”.
As for the Parti Québécois, it sees irony in the establishment of a new dashboard. “The minister says: ‘I’m not here to put out fires.’ point people are dissatisfied,” said MP Joël Arseneau.
