Average wait for hospital bed in western Quebec much longer than 12-hour goal

Quebec resident Denis Marcheterre says his mother, who was dealing with cardiovascular issues, once had to waitthree days on a stretcher before a hospital bed opened up.

"No fun. Very stressful," he saidof the wait.

It's not a unique experience in the province.

According to statistics provided to Radio-Canada, patients treated in eight hospitals under theCentre intgr de sant et des services sociaux de l'Outaouais(CISSO)in western Quebecwaited an average of 18.9 hours for a hospital bedfrom Jan. 30 to Feb. 26 this year.

That's up from 18.3 hours during the same period in 2021, and well below CISSO's12-hourgoal.

Hull Hospital, whereMarcheterre says his mother waited, saw the average on-stretcher wait time for a bed increase to 22.5 hours from 20.1 hours, whileHospital De Papineausaw an even larger year-over-year increaseto 22.7 hours from 15.5 hours.

Marcheterre,head of the patients' rights organization Action Sant Outaouais,stresseshis mother was treated while on a stretcher a point also emphasizedbyMarie-ve Cloutier, director of nursing for CISSO.

Cloutier saysthe wait times do not reflect how long a patient waited to be seen by a doctor.

"Everything rests on how many beds are available," she toldRadio-Canada.

Marcheterre said the province should increase bed counts and focus more on providingcare inside peoples'homes.

PaulBrunet, a lawyer and head of the Quebec Council for the Protection of Patients, agreed upping the level of home care, particular visits by doctors, is key. It wouldreduce the number of elderly patients who wind up taking up hospital beds that others then must wait for, he said.

"They're not treated where they should be treated or they should be admitted in long term facilities," Brunet said.

"Let's work on causes rather than on consequences."