Santé Québec: Stanley Vollant wants Indigenous people “to be heard”

Innu doctor Stanley Vollant was appointed Wednesday to sit on the board of directors of the new Santé Québec agency. The only Indigenous person in this group, he has given himself the mandate to “make the voices of the first peoples heard”, to improve access to care for remote communities and to offer “culturally safe” care to the First Nations. and the Inuit.

I want to ensure that the voices of first peoples are heard, listened to and taken into consideration. I want to make sure these voices are never forgottenexplained the Innu doctor from the Pessamit community in an interview with Espaces nationaux.

After evaluating the 600 applications received, the Quebec government announced Thursday the names of the 15 people who were selected to sit on the THAT. of Santé Québec. Dr Vollant will notably sit alongside Régine Laurent, who chaired the Special Commission on the rights of children and youth protection from 2019 to 2021.

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In the health network, there are problems linked to access to care, racism and cultural security. These are things that we absolutely must not forget, and having an indigenous voice on this board of directors is a pluscontinues the 59-year-old surgeon.

In addition, First Nations and Inuit have different needs from Quebecers in terms of care, he emphasized on the show All one morning on the airwaves of ICI Première the day after his appointment. For example, certain diseases are more prevalent in Indigenous communities, including diabetes, mental health problems and drug addiction, says Mr. Vollant, who studied medicine at the University of Montreal.

Indigenous people are also much poorer than the rest of the Quebec population and their level of education remains lower. At the socio-health level, the data is very poor and needs to be improvedhe lamented.

Two priorities

Among the issues that Dr. Vollant wishes to manage during his mandate, he intends to integrate the concept of cultural security within the health network. so that every Indigenous person can be treated as an equal.

He also mentions the improvement of access to care among the first peoples, in particular the continuity of care when the patient returns to his community. It is important that indigenous communities become partners [du réseau de la santé] so that patient information is transferred and there is continuity of care providedhe insists.

We have reached a moment where the first peoples have become essential. Improving their health has a positive effect on Quebec society.

Although he admits that the problems of access to care and cultural security are not new, he nevertheless hopes that the “apolitical” side of the new Santé Québec agency will make it possible to implement long-term solutions rather than simply electoral ones. .

Note also that last summer, Dr. Vollant became a medical advisor to the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador Health and Social Services Commission (FNQLHSSC).

FNQLHSSC will be useful in addressing First Nations issues in the THAT of Santé Québec, which will benefit from information and information. These are two big hats to wear, but which are complementary”,”text”:”My role at the FNQLHSSC will be useful in addressing First Nations issues at the Board of Health Quebec, which will benefit from information and information. These are two big hats to wear, but they are complementary”}}”>My role at FNQLHSSC will be useful in addressing the issues of First Nations in THAT. of Santé Québec, which will benefit from information and information. These are two big hats to wear but which are complementaryhe assures.

A THAT. diversified

The composition of the board of directors is particularly diverse, he rejoiced. THE THAT. is made up of, among others, Régine Laurent, a trained nurse who, among other things, chaired the Special Commission on the Rights of Children and Youth Protection from 2019 to 2021, and Diane Lamarre, former PQ MP and ex-president of the ‘Order of Pharmacists. THE THAT. will be chaired by entrepreneur and businesswoman Christiane Germain.

The members come from different backgrounds, so it will enrich the discussion, and I hope it will allow us to see other ways of developing new strategies and managing the health systemhe stressed.

Despite the doubts that remain regarding the creation of this new agency and its capacity to reform the province’s health network, Dr. Vollant is optimistic. The status quo is no longer acceptable in Quebec. Patient care must be improved. I give this agency a chance to achieve its objectives.he declared on ICI Première.

Created under Bill 15, adopted under gag order last December, the government agency Santé Québec will have the mandate to manage and coordinate the daily activities of the entire Quebec health network, which brings together a total of more than 300,000 workers in hundreds of establishments.