Committee calls for Minister to keep the Lachine Hospital part of the MUHC and mobilizes the community

LACHINE, QC, Jan. 14, 2013 /CNW Telbec/ - MNA for Marquette, François Ouimet, the Chairman of the Board of the Lachine Hospital Foundation, Jacques Filion, and the mayors of Lachine and Dorval announce the creation of a committee to keep the Lachine Hospital part of the McGill University Health Centre. The committee is co-chaired by Claude Dauphin, mayor of the borough of Lachine, and Edgar Rouleau, mayor of the City of Dorval.

The announcement is in reaction to the Ministre de la Santé et des Services sociaux Dr. Réjean Hébert's declaration of the transfer of the hospital's management to the CSSS de Dorval-Lachine-LaSalle without any consultation with the parties involved.

François Ouimet maintains that "since its affiliation with the MUHC, the hospital has seen major improvements in health care for the benefit of all patients. It is clear that language has never been an issue at this hospital. We ask that the Minister change his decision immediately and invest the $63 million that has been promised for the much-needed modernization of our hospital."

Edgar Rouleau reminds the Minister that "the primary vocation of this hundred-year-old institution is above all to provide excellent health care for the benefit of the entire community, and is not, as he has suggested, a 'Francophone vocation.' Since becoming part of the MUHC in 2008, major enhancements have been made in the quality of care being delivered at the hospital. This is the worst solution to a non-existent problem."

Jacques Filion declares that "the staff at the hospital as well as the Francophone and Anglophone patients are happy with the current situation. The community has clearly demonstrated their satisfaction by contributing $2.5 million to our Best Care for Life Campaign in support of the hospital's modernization. We strongly believe that a return to the status quo prior to 2008 would be a terrible scenario."

Claude Dauphin urges Minister Hébert to renounce his decision immediately. "There is still time for the Minister to reconsider his position. In the meantime, the community is already mobilised. In 2007, we marched in the streets to save our hospital and we will do it again if we have to. We call on the citizens of Lachine and Dorval to join us by signing our petition and expressing their disagreement with the Minister."

The two mayors have already written to the Minister asking him to change his decision.

About the Save the Lachine Hospital of the MUHC Committee

The Save the Lachine Hospital of the MUHC Committee was created following the Ministre de la Santé et des Services sociaux Dr. Réjean Hébert's announcement of the separation of the Lachine Hospital from the McGill University Health Centre and the transfer of the hospital's management to the CSSS Dorval-Lachine-LaSalle without any consultation with the parties involved. The objective of the committee is to mobilize the community to defend the interests of the Lachine Hospital and maintain its partnership with the MUHC in order to be able to continue its modernization and expansion project for the benefit of patients and their families.

Twitter @NotreHopLachine

SOURCE: Committee to Save the Lachine Hospital of the MUHC

Anne Le Bel
[email protected]
514 571-3313

Denis Gaumond
514 892-5200
[email protected]

Sébastien Gauthier
514 633-4323
[email protected]