Quebec patients will be able to express their level of health satisfaction

Jacques Boissinot The Canadian Press “What we want is to be able to compare establishments,” said Christian Dubé, adding that, according to him, this will make it possible to identify best practices to then extend them to the entire network.

Quebecers who have received health care in the public network will soon be able to express their level of satisfaction confidentially using an online questionnaire.

This was announced Thursday by the Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, who presented this new initiative as “one more step to improve” the patient experience in Quebec.

En scrum release to the National Assembly, the Minister explained that the data collected will be published in the government's famous “dashboard” on Tuesday.

He said that a pilot project was underway in four facilities, but soon patients across the network will be asked to comment on the quality of services.

The participating facilities so far are:

• the Integrated Health and Social Services Center of the Côte-Nord;
• The Integrated University Health and Social Services Center of the Saguenay–Lac-Saint- Jean;
• The Integrated University Health and Social Services Center of the Eastern Island of Montreal;
• The CHU Sainte-Justine.

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The goal is for the network to adapt better and more quickly to the needs of citizens, said Mr. Dubé.

“What we want, it's being able to compare institutions,” he said, adding that he believes this will help identify best practices and then roll them out across the network.

Scale from 1 to 10

Patients will receive a QR code giving access to the short online questionnaire, which they can complete either during or after their stay, the minister said.

A hard copy of the form is not available at this time, his press officer later clarified.

People will be able to evaluate, by giving a score from 1 to 10, the waiting time, the courtesy of the staff, as well as the clarity of the information. They will also be asked to give an overall rating.

It is this last piece of data that will be published in the dashboard and that will make it possible to establish a general satisfaction rate, as a percentage.

“When they answer 7, 8 or 9, 10 even, that's satisfactory, okay? After that, 6 and 7, we are less satisfied, said Mr. Dubé. It is very good news for Quebecers to be able to comment. »

The Doubtful Opposition

Reacting with skepticism to Mr. Dubé's announcement, the spokesperson for Québec solidaire en santé, Vincent Marissal, recalled that the network's problems are already well known.

“The Minister knows very well network status. He just has to read the ombudsman reports, the health and welfare commissioner reports, or he can go read testimonials,” he said.

He pointed out that one of his fellow citizens in Rosemont, columnist Geneviève Pettersen, had recently complained of having had to sleep on the floor of a hospital, while her daughter was unwell. “No one cared about them,” the MP lamented.

“He has a little techie side to him, our minister. But the situation on the ground, it is known, then his new gadget will not give any more nurses for patients in Quebec, “he added.

It's a “smoke show,” added Liberal MP Jennifer Maccarone. “The first thing to do is to make sure that we have enough professionals and doctors working,” she said.

For his part, PQ MP Joël Arseneau recalled that the government's objective was to reduce the wait to see a doctor in the emergency room to 90 minutes. It is currently 2 hours 41 minutes.

“Once we know […] what we already know, […] that the system is all wrong, will […] ] the government [will] make an even more pronounced shift towards the private sector? asked Mr. Arseneau.

Examples of questions that will be asked:

• Was the information received easy to understand?
• Did you have enough time to ask your questions?
• Did you receive the information you needed to guide your decision-making?
• You were treated with respect?
• Were your values ​​and concerns considered?
• Waiting times were generally acceptable?