A small town in the Laurentians which has opposed the nighttime closure of its emergency room in court for almost a year can finally claim victory, having managed to reach an amicable agreement to maintain care 24 hours a day.
• Also read: “The fundamental rights of citizens are at stake”: a town in the Laurentians goes to court to save its emergency
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“To be forced to sue a hospital… We would have done without it,” breathes Mayor Denis Lacasse, nevertheless very satisfied with the result.
The specter of the nighttime closure of the Rivière-Rouge emergency room, which has been hanging over residents’ noses since December 2023, is now a thing of the past. Citing a glaring lack of employees, the Integrated Health and Social Services Center (CISSS) of the Laurentides wanted to close it from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m.
But the municipality and the CISSS have just reached an amicable agreement, settling this dispute and avoiding a long trial. The municipality had already obtained several injunctions during the year to force the maintenance of night services.
This time, the CISSS is committed to officially abandoning its plans to close the emergency room.
Serve as an example
According to the mayor, the example of Rivière-Rouge could be replicated throughout Quebec, where several municipalities are struggling with service breakdowns imposed by the health network.
“It was a microscope on a situation, which is very widespread in Quebec,” adds lawyer Carl-Éric Therrien, who led the case.
The mayor of Rivière-Rouge, Denis Lacasse, lawyer Carl-Éric Therrien and Martine Riopel, last February.
Photo Hugo Duchaine
The municipality and the CISSS have agreed to collaborate to attract and retain staff, for example. Several current emergency employees, such as doctors and nurses, also denounced the possible closure, because they felt they were capable of providing safe care.
Hence the importance of listening to professionals on site, argues Me Therrien.
Solutions durables
In a press release, the president and CEO of the CISSS des Laurentides, Julie Delaney, stressed that, despite the recruitment challenges, she is “confident that by working together, [ils] will succeed[t] to find lasting solutions.
