Quebec denies new Vaudreuil hospital delayed until 2028, despite staffing concerns

The province and regional health board insist the hospital will open in stages starting in 2027, despite concerns over staffing.

The Quebec government and the Montérégie-Ouest regional health board are disputing claims that the opening of the new hospital in Vaudreuil-Dorion will once again be delayed until 2028.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the hospital took place four years ago, in the middle of the pandemic.

The project was first announced by the Liberal government in 2015 and was set to be completed by 2026.

But in December, the government said it had to postpone the opening until 2027 because of construction delays and staffing issues.

The local health board now says it will still open in 2027, but over several months. It will start by opening clinics, followed by a full emergency ward.

However, medical professionals have their doubts.

Dr. Sylvain Dufresne, who heads the Association of General Practitioners for Vaudreuil-Soulanges, said the first thing to open should be the emergency room, “otherwise, it’s just a glorified clinic,” he added.

Dufresne said the emergency ward alone would require at least 40 full-time doctors.

Marie-Claude Nichols, the Liberal MNA for the Vaudreuil riding, said recruitment won’t be a problem.

“We are we going to attract more people from Hawkesbury, more doctors from Valleyfield, and from the Lakeshore,” Nichols said enthusiastically.

She pointed to the area’s fast-growing population while criticizing the CAQ government for not keeping up with the demand for care in her region.

The regional health board said it launched its recruitment campaign last year to fill 3,500 jobs, including nursing staff.

But nurses’ associations and unions say the existing shortage everywhere else in Quebec will be an obstacle.

Dufresne said there is a shortage of doctors across Quebec, and he doesn’t see how the new hospital could be fully staffed by 2028, let alone 2027.

“You can’t take doctors and staff from Valleyfield and the Lakeshore and bring them here,” Dufresne said.

“It would be like closing one hospital to open a new one. The area’s MNA says more investments will be needed if the hospital is to open on time and fully staffed.”

Nichols said it was ultimately a question of money.