A prominent Quebec Liberal candidate is questioning leader Jean Charest's claims about what his government did to improve the province's health-care system.
Pierre Paradis, a long-serving MNA in Brome-Missisquoi, told CBC that the Liberal party is overselling any progress it made in office to reduce wait times for health care treatment.
"People know that we have done a good job, but maybe not as good as we [claim]," he said on Sunday at a Liberal rally in Sherbrooke.
Paradis said the Liberals did well by appointing surgeon Philippe Couillard as health minister because he "stabilized" the system, but real progress in improving care has yet to come.
Since the election campaign began, Charest has referred frequently to his government's record on reducing wait times for health services, notably for three types of surgery: hip and knee replacement procedures and cataract treatment.
But reports indicate that wait times for other procedures haven't diminished and problems such as a shortage of family doctors and overcrowded hospital emergency rooms continue to plague the health-care system.
Paradis criticizes wait times
Paradis said he's seen first-hand how ER overcrowding continues to be a problem in hospitals.
"Last election, when I walked into the halls of the Brome-Missisquoi Perkins Hospital, I had 20 people on stretchers in the hall of the hospital," he said Sunday. "I walk, during this campaign, into the emergency room, and there's an average of 15. So I cannot tell people that the problem has been solved."
Paradis and Charest have been at odds in the past. The Liberal premier did not ask the veteran MNA to join his cabinet in 2003, and Paradis was one of the few dissenting voices who opposed the privatization of Mont Orford.
Paradis ventured his opinion about Quebec's health care system as more than a thousand Liberal supporters rallied around Charest during a visit to his hometown riding.
Charest peppered his speech with health-care promises from the Liberals' election platform.
He told supporters the Liberals are the only party to make health care a priority and will hire the most nurses and doctors to prepare the system for greater demands expected as the population ages.
The Liberal leader has insisted throughout the campaign that his government did everything it could to neutralize the most pressing problems plaguing the health-care system, such as wait times and hospital overcrowding.
Charest responded to Paradis' challenge by underlining the Liberals' $5.7 billion investment in Quebec's health care system. "We have done everything humanly possible," he said, adding that enrolment in medical and nursing school is on the rise, which will eventually counteract staff shortages he blames on the PQ.
Charest has repeatedly reproached past PQ governments for current problems in the health care system. Previous PQ governments allowed early retirement for thousands of doctors and nurses, which left a void in the system.
Paradis' challenge to the Liberals' health care record came the same day a coalition of health activists called on politicians to reveal their plans for health care.
On Sunday, the Coalition Solidarité Santé (Health Solidarity Coalition) accused all political parties of paying lip service to health care.
According to the coalition of community groups and health care unions, Quebec spends the least amount of money per capita among all Canadian provinces, and faces tough decisions in the future about privatizing some services.
The coalition said Quebec would have to increase health spending by $2.6 billion to catch up to Canadian standards.
A separate coalition of cancer researchers also launched a plea to campaigning politicians, demanding they be specific about their plans to address what they call the leading cause of death in the province.
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Audio
- CBC reporter Shawn Apel in conversation with Liberal MNA Pierre Paradis (Runs: 8:01)
- Play: Real Media »
| Party | Elected | Leading | Total | Vote Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LIB | 48 | 0 | 48 | 33.08% |
| ADQ | 41 | 0 | 41 | 30.80% |
| PQ | 36 | 0 | 36 | 28.32% |
| QS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.65% |
| GRN | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.89% |
| OTH | 0 | 0 | 0 | .26% |
| Last Update:March 27, 12:52:21 AM EDT | ||||
Quebec Votes 2007 Headlines »
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- Quebec election result 'good news' for Canada: PM
- Stephen Harper says voters in the Quebec election have used their ballots to reject calls for another referendum in a "great result" for Canada.
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- Quebecers are waking up to a minority Liberal government — the first minority in the province in 130 years — and a new official Opposition.