Aaron Derfel
@aaronderfel.bsky.social
I'm a health journalist at the Montreal Gazette. You can also find me on Mastodon at mas.to/@aderfel and Telegram at t.me/AaronDerfel.
My bio: https://www.concordia.ca/faculty/aaron-derfel.html
My bio: https://www.concordia.ca/faculty/aaron-derfel.html
7) The reason for this is simple: This reshuffling of the deck chairs on Quebec's Titanic medical system is being carried out with the same number of medical staff. The staff are just moving from the public to the private sector, creating more shortages in the public system. End of thread.
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
7) The reason for this is simple: This reshuffling of the deck chairs on Quebec's Titanic medical system is being carried out with the same number of medical staff. The staff are just moving from the public to the private sector, creating more shortages in the public system. End of thread.
6) Health Minister Christian Dubé's latest proposal is to shift backlogged surgeries like knee and hip replacements from the public system to the private sector at greater cost to taxpayers. But this transfer indirectly weakens the public system in the long run.
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
6) Health Minister Christian Dubé's latest proposal is to shift backlogged surgeries like knee and hip replacements from the public system to the private sector at greater cost to taxpayers. But this transfer indirectly weakens the public system in the long run.
5) A growing number of orthopedic surgeons — fed up with the lack of resources in the public system — have opted out of medicare and are operating in the private-for-profit sector. This trend has been gaining momentum under Santé Québec.
montrealgazette.com/news/reveale...
montrealgazette.com/news/reveale...
Revealed: Exodus of Quebec doctors to private sector accelerates despite new law
Revealed- Exodus of Quebec doctors to private sector accelerates despite new law
montrealgazette.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
5) A growing number of orthopedic surgeons — fed up with the lack of resources in the public system — have opted out of medicare and are operating in the private-for-profit sector. This trend has been gaining momentum under Santé Québec.
montrealgazette.com/news/reveale...
montrealgazette.com/news/reveale...
4) At present, 150 operating rooms in the public network are closed each weekday in Quebec for lack of staff. This has contributed to a ballooning of wait times for surgery. As of Sept. 20, 6,200 Quebecers were on wait lists of at least a year for their operation.
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
4) At present, 150 operating rooms in the public network are closed each weekday in Quebec for lack of staff. This has contributed to a ballooning of wait times for surgery. As of Sept. 20, 6,200 Quebecers were on wait lists of at least a year for their operation.
3) Astute political analyst Josée Legault has sometimes written about this phenomenon. She uses a great French word to describe it: "vampiriser." Below is one of her columns on the subject.
www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/02/17/l...
www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/02/17/l...
La montée du privé-privé en santé doit être freinée
En plus d’affamer à répétition la première ligne de la médecine familiale, nos gouvernements ont fermé les yeux sur la montée du privé-privé.
www.journaldemontreal.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
3) Astute political analyst Josée Legault has sometimes written about this phenomenon. She uses a great French word to describe it: "vampiriser." Below is one of her columns on the subject.
www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/02/17/l...
www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/02/17/l...
2) Click below to read my original story on the subject in the @mtlgazette.bsky.social. The upshot is that more and more the Coalition Avenir Québec government is embracing private-sector options in health care — often to the detriment of the public system.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Quebec proposes private surgeries for patients waiting at least a year in the public system
"The worst part is the CAQ admits outright that surgeries will cost more in the private sector. It's nonsense," union leader Réjean Leclerc says.
montrealgazette.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
2) Click below to read my original story on the subject in the @mtlgazette.bsky.social. The upshot is that more and more the Coalition Avenir Québec government is embracing private-sector options in health care — often to the detriment of the public system.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
11) But in Canada, physicians like @dralandrummond.bsky.social have been sounding the alarm for years, likening Canadian ERs to dying canaries in a coal mine shaft. Yet nothing has been done.
Nothing.
End of thread.
Nothing.
End of thread.
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
11) But in Canada, physicians like @dralandrummond.bsky.social have been sounding the alarm for years, likening Canadian ERs to dying canaries in a coal mine shaft. Yet nothing has been done.
Nothing.
End of thread.
Nothing.
End of thread.
10) The New York Tiimes article is calling attention to an ER crisis unfolding in the United States. In September, the BBC reported on more than "800 deaths linked to long A&E waits" in Scotland. Thus, this problem is no longer unique to Canada.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
More than 800 deaths in Scotland linked to long A&E waits
The Royal College of Emergency Medicine found that 76,510 people waited more than 12 hours in emergency departments last year.
www.bbc.com
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
10) The New York Tiimes article is calling attention to an ER crisis unfolding in the United States. In September, the BBC reported on more than "800 deaths linked to long A&E waits" in Scotland. Thus, this problem is no longer unique to Canada.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
9) The MEI study points out the situation has been growing worse in ERs since 2019. The chart below shows nearly 27% of Quebec ER patients languishing on stretchers for at least 24 hours. The goal should be zero for that length of time. Also note no improvement since 2020.
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
9) The MEI study points out the situation has been growing worse in ERs since 2019. The chart below shows nearly 27% of Quebec ER patients languishing on stretchers for at least 24 hours. The goal should be zero for that length of time. Also note no improvement since 2020.
8) In September, the Montreal Economic Institute published a study that concluded "too many Canadians are leaving emergency rooms untreated." Quebec reported the highest number for 2024-2025 of any province: a staggering 428,676.
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
8) In September, the Montreal Economic Institute published a study that concluded "too many Canadians are leaving emergency rooms untreated." Quebec reported the highest number for 2024-2025 of any province: a staggering 428,676.
7) In February, a 69-year-old Laval man with a history of arrhythmia died after waiting for 11 hours in the Cité de la santé hospital ER without ever seeing a doctor, his family says.
montreal.citynews.ca/2025/02/17/g...
montreal.citynews.ca/2025/02/17/g...
Grandfather's sudden death in Laval ER after not seeing doctor for 11 hours under investigation
Umberto Mastantuono had already been at the Cité-de-la-Santé emergency room for hours and did not want to be moved. “He trusted the fact that I’m in a hospital,” said his wife Diamante Mastantuono. “‘...
montreal.citynews.ca
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
7) In February, a 69-year-old Laval man with a history of arrhythmia died after waiting for 11 hours in the Cité de la santé hospital ER without ever seeing a doctor, his family says.
montreal.citynews.ca/2025/02/17/g...
montreal.citynews.ca/2025/02/17/g...
6) Flash-forward to 2025. What is the situation like today in Canadian ERs? In August, an Ontario family called on the government to set maximum pediatric ER wait times after their 16-year-old son died following an eight-hour wait for a doctor last year.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Ontario couple whose teenage son died after 8-hour wait in ER calls for law reform | CBC News
An Ontario family is calling on the provincial government to introduce legislation that would set maximum emergency room wait times for children after their teenage son died following an eight-hour wa...
www.cbc.ca
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
6) Flash-forward to 2025. What is the situation like today in Canadian ERs? In August, an Ontario family called on the government to set maximum pediatric ER wait times after their 16-year-old son died following an eight-hour wait for a doctor last year.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
5) In February 2023, I wrote a four-part series about six deaths in the ER of Lakeshore General Hospital in the Montreal suburb of Pointe-Claire. Those deaths could have been prevented.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Staff haunted by suicide at the Lakeshore Hospital ER
A Montreal Gazette investigation exposes one of six deaths at the West Island hospital that whistleblowers say could have been prevented.
montrealgazette.com
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
5) In February 2023, I wrote a four-part series about six deaths in the ER of Lakeshore General Hospital in the Montreal suburb of Pointe-Claire. Those deaths could have been prevented.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
4) As the Times noted, the American College of Emergency Physicians warned that “boarding” — in which patients wait in the ER for days and sometimes weeks for hospital admission — is “a public health emergency.” The same thing is happening in Canada.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Analysis: The horrible psychological toll exacted by long ER waits
"Boarding duration (in an ER) is a direct risk factor for developing delirium or severe agitation," a research study found.
montrealgazette.com
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
4) As the Times noted, the American College of Emergency Physicians warned that “boarding” — in which patients wait in the ER for days and sometimes weeks for hospital admission — is “a public health emergency.” The same thing is happening in Canada.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
3) To quote from the New York Times article: "ER staff are under mounting pressure to discharge patients as fast as they can: Cynics among them call their job 'moving the meat.' Hospitals are nearing capacity because of aging facilities and economic pressures."
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
3) To quote from the New York Times article: "ER staff are under mounting pressure to discharge patients as fast as they can: Cynics among them call their job 'moving the meat.' Hospitals are nearing capacity because of aging facilities and economic pressures."
2) The purpose of this thread is not to denigrate the dedication and professionalism of ER medical staff, but to draw attention to the impossible conditions under which they now work. Under such circumstances, medical errors like a wrong diagnosis do occur.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Quebec's ERs are flirting with danger
New stats show an alarming spike in emergency room mortality, with lengths of stay that are by far the highest of any province.
montrealgazette.com
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
2) The purpose of this thread is not to denigrate the dedication and professionalism of ER medical staff, but to draw attention to the impossible conditions under which they now work. Under such circumstances, medical errors like a wrong diagnosis do occur.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
5) Enfin, mon texte s'appuyait sur des faits et des documents. Je pense avoir été juste et impartial sur une question d'intérêt public qui a suscité de vives passions. Il est évident que cet article ne sera pas le dernier sur ce sujet. Fin de l'enfilade.
August 30, 2025 at 9:22 PM
5) Enfin, mon texte s'appuyait sur des faits et des documents. Je pense avoir été juste et impartial sur une question d'intérêt public qui a suscité de vives passions. Il est évident que cet article ne sera pas le dernier sur ce sujet. Fin de l'enfilade.
4) Rappelons que l'étudiant était diplômé du Collège Dawson, qui faisait l'objet d'un rapport gouvernemental sur les tensions croissantes entre les étudiants l'année dernière. Vous trouverez ci-dessous le lien vers ce rapport.
www.quebec.ca/resultats-de...
www.quebec.ca/resultats-de...
Résultats de recherche
Page des résultats de recherche
www.quebec.ca
August 30, 2025 at 9:22 PM
4) Rappelons que l'étudiant était diplômé du Collège Dawson, qui faisait l'objet d'un rapport gouvernemental sur les tensions croissantes entre les étudiants l'année dernière. Vous trouverez ci-dessous le lien vers ce rapport.
www.quebec.ca/resultats-de...
www.quebec.ca/resultats-de...
3) En juin, l'étudiant m'a envoyé un courriel disant qu'il était victime d'allégations sans fondement de la part d'un groupe anonyme connu sous le nom de Jewish Clinicians Against Antisemitism. Il a également écrit à propos du site de réseau social Discord.
www.montrealgazette.com/news/article...
www.montrealgazette.com/news/article...
Racist, sexist posts flood group chat for Quebec med school applicants
Dawson College launches investigation into offensive Discord posts.
www.montrealgazette.com
August 30, 2025 at 9:22 PM
3) En juin, l'étudiant m'a envoyé un courriel disant qu'il était victime d'allégations sans fondement de la part d'un groupe anonyme connu sous le nom de Jewish Clinicians Against Antisemitism. Il a également écrit à propos du site de réseau social Discord.
www.montrealgazette.com/news/article...
www.montrealgazette.com/news/article...
2) Cet incident soulève des questions quant à la manière dont l'Université de Sherbrooke et le cabinet de la ministre de l'Enseignement supérieur, Pascale Déry, ont traité les plaintes concernant l'étudiant en question.
August 30, 2025 at 9:22 PM
2) Cet incident soulève des questions quant à la manière dont l'Université de Sherbrooke et le cabinet de la ministre de l'Enseignement supérieur, Pascale Déry, ont traité les plaintes concernant l'étudiant en question.