In Quebec, many people are calling for a major reform of the health care system. The time has come to respond to these calls and turn our monopolistic system into a mixed network, where we recognize the importance of parallel resources in improving access to and quality of health care for patients. .
Posted at 10:00 a.m.
The good news ? These solutions have already been tested and adopted in other countries with a universal health system, such as the United Kingdom and Sweden. All that remains is to rely on their experience and add our personal touch, if necessary.
But what guarantees a winning recipe? Ingredients, or reforms, that go well with the Canada Health Act and which have proven to be beneficial to patients. But beware, as in any recipe, the order of incorporation is just as important as the ingredients themselves.
The first step is to adopt the electronic medical record and improve access to health data. Outside, handwritten files and communications by fax! It is time that these archaic practices give way to the technologies of the modern era. In doing so, it will be possible, among other things, to plan health care based on evidence and facilitate access to patient profiles.
Unleash health system capacity
Then, the ban on taking out duplicate insurance must be lifted, then the one preventing mixed practice. If Quebecers could take out duplicate insurance without restriction, patients who wish to turn to the entrepreneurial sector would have many more choices. And once the ban on mixed practice is lifted, healthcare professionals could work in both the independent and government-run sectors, without having to navigate the red tape to join or leave the network. public.
Some may fear that the combination of these two ingredients will lead to a drain on resources in the government-run sector. But let them be reassured, the recipe provides for three measures to increase the number of health professionals: the simplification of the integration process for doctors trained abroad wishing to practice in Quebec, the elimination of quotas in faculties medicine and the creation of a national license allowing doctors to practice anywhere in the country. Without an increase in human capital, access to health services will remain suboptimal, and our health system will be perpetually under-resourced.
Set up the right incentives
Once these steps have been completed, the ideal conditions should be met to move on to funding Quebec hospitals based on activities. Funding based on past years’ cost-based budgets – the current model – provides little incentive for hospitals to innovate or improve the quality or efficiency of their care. However, in this new formula, the hospital budget would be defined according to the actual volume of patients and the severity of their health problems. This is the key ingredient: as the money would now depend on the patient base, it would become a source of income rather than a burden. It would thus be useless to try to ration it by long waiting lists.
Finally, the icing on the cake, the last step of this tested and approved recipe consists in delegating to entrepreneurs the management of certain hospitals, which will nevertheless remain subject to state funding. This reform will in no way compromise the universality of the health care system, as care will remain free at the point of service.
On the other hand, competition to attract patients (now a source of revenue with the introduction of the previous stage) means operational efficiency gains… a plus for patients!
Main players in the crisis for two years, our health professionals give themselves body and soul to treat us, but no matter how much they do, there is a limit to what they can accomplish in a system that seems to be in league against them. These courageous workers deserve a flexible environment adapted to the needs of their patients.
With a dash of political will and a dash of elbow grease, these reforms could finally propel Quebec’s health care system into the 21stand century and put institutional efficiency and the well-being of patients at the top of the agenda, as they should be.