Quebec to deploy home hospitalization services in eight health territories

Quebec Minister for Health and for Seniors Sonia Belanger introduces home hospitalization services. Here, Belanger tables legislation on end of life care and assisted death, Thursday, February 16, 2023 at the legislature in Quebec City. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

In a bid to free up hospital beds and improve the quality of care, Quebec announced Monday it will soon launch home hospitalization services. The first phase targets eight CISSS and CIUSSS in the greater Montreal and Quebec City areas.

The services will be available to patients by 2024, according to the Minister for Health and Seniors, Sonia Bélanger. If their condition permits, patients can choose to continue their treatment at home while remaining under the supervision of a medical team.

Thanks to technology, medical staff will be able to follow the patient's progress remotely. Shorter hospital stays are beneficial for patients and help prevent further deterioration, a common negative consequence of long hospital stays, particularly for seniors.

Regular communication between the care team and the patient hospitalized at home has also been promised. They'll be offered face-to-face and virtual visits. It will also be possible to speak with a nurse by phone at any time.

The first phase of the project involves CIUSSS du Centre-Ouest-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, CIUSSS de l'Est-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, CIUSSS de l'Ouest-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, CISSS des Laurentides, CISSS de Laval, CISSS de Lanaudière, CISSS de la Montérégie-Centre and CHU de Québec-Université Laval. However, the goal is to eventually implement the system in all 34 institutions and service centers in Quebec.

Bélanger made the announcement alongside the health minister's parliamentary assistant, Youri Chassin, and the head of Quebec's medical specialists (FMSQ), Dr. Vincent Oliva.

The initiative will be funded in part by savings from the work of the Institut de la pertinence des actes médicaux (IPAM). A sum of $40 million will be devoted to the home hospitalization project by 2026.

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This report was first published by The Canadian Press in French on May 1, 2023.