It passes or it breaks this fall for the digital health file, which Quebec wants to deploy in two regions first from November 29. A pilot “showcase” which already takes on colossal dimensions: in the north of Montreal and Mauricie-Center-du-Québec, no less than 30,000 people must follow training from 30 minutes to 35 hours.
“In May, they told us that no one could take a vacation from September to January-February,” says Isabelle Roy, president of the Quebec Interprofessional Health Federation (FIQ) for Nord-de-l’île-de-Montréal.
After discussions with the union, management finally turned back and allowed certain limited leave during this period, she said.
The members of another union, the alliance of professional and technical personnel of health and social services, also received this kind of request, according to an internal email obtained by The press, dated June.
“Considering that the deployment of the digital health file will take place on November 29 and that our collective effort is essential for the success of this major organizational project, certain leave, including annual holidays during the fall period, could be restricted in order to allow a stability of resources within the work teams,” said the message.
Health Quebec denies having sent such a directive. “However, a request was made to all the managers concerned as well as to the local trainers in order to be present during all the deployment of the digital health file”, specifies Jean-Nicolas Aubé, spokesperson for the organization.
The “local trainers” include staff members trained first to then transmit their knowledge to their colleagues. They can be unionized employees, such as nurses, or non-syndicated, like doctors.
The deployment of the digital health file (DSN) is also likely to be assigned by the pressure means of specialist doctors against bill 106.
Because their representatives invited them last spring to no longer participate in the tasks that interfere with their “clinical activities, including those related to the establishment of the DSN”.
These “means of pressure” are maintained, says the spokesperson for the Federation of Quebec Specialists, Pâris Psychogyios.
The Federation says it is also ready to “intensify” them if the government “persists in its stubbornness to have” adopted “its bill, which must link part of the salary of doctors to performance indicators.
A point of view which is far from unanimous in the environment. “There are more effective ways to demonstrate your dissatisfaction than sabotage your work tool,” said The press A doctor specializing in northern Montreal. He requested anonymity to protect his job.
Pilot project
The DSN must centralize all clinical data from patients, including appointments and medication prescriptions. The pilot project in the CIUSS of Nord-de-l’île-de-Montréal and Mauricie-et-du-Center-du-Québec forces the directions of these establishments to redouble their precautions. The launch is scheduled for one Saturday to reduce the impacts of a possible failure.
In Mauricie-Center-du-Québec, Health Quebec has decided to postpone the launch in several cities, at the request of the CIUSSS, as Radio-Canada first reported in June.
“In order to limit risks and support the care and services to the population, we have listened to the concerns formulated by the teams, and adapted the deployment schedule in two phases,” explains Jean-Nicolas Aubé, in an email in The press.
The health establishments located in Shawinigan and Drummondville, in particular, will go ahead in November. But the others, including those of Trois-Rivières and Victoriaville, will expect a “second phase” in May 2026, explains Patricia Mailhot, president of the FIQ for the region. “Maybe the Saaqclic scandal pushed them to want to divide this very big project,” she says.
Health Quebec requires more money
Radio-Canada reported in June $ 136 million cost exceeding in this pilot project, over the 307 million estimated for the project on the dashboard. “Additional sums are required to complement the project successfully in particular for the training component,” confirms Jean-Nicolas Aubé.
He specifies that the government made “a rigorous review of the project”. “Discussions are underway between Health Quebec and the government, we will not comment on it at this stage,” he said.
In addition, the Agency also requests additional funds for another major project which also accuses significant delays and cost -increasing: the information system for finance, supply and human resources (SIFARH).
The program, which should centralize the internal management of the health system, will ultimately cost more than twice as expected: its invoice is now assessed at 430 million, according to the IT project dashboard.
The schedule of the project is also pushed by two years, to 2028. Health Quebec decided to split it in two: a component for finances and supply, and another for human resources.
For the first, the agency says it is in discussions with Quebec to “redefine the parameters of the project”.
As for the other component on human resources, mystery: it would be “under analysis,” says Santé Santé Québec.
With the collaboration of Marie-Eve Cousineau, The press