The Québec Medical Association Agrees with the Conclusions of the National Report on the Impact of Demanding Work Hours on Resident Physicians

MONTREAL, June 27, 2013 /CNW Telbec/ - The Québec Medical Association welcomes the release of the national report on the impact of demanding work hours on resident physicians. The QMA feels that it was essential for a national steering committee, composed of Canadian health care organizations and stakeholders, to examine the problem of resident duty hours, for which it submitted a motion to the General Council of the Canadian Medical Association in 2011.

In the wake of the arbitration award on June 7, 2011, that confirmed the need to reduce consecutive resident duty hours in an institution from 24 hours to 16, the motion submitted by the QMA aimed to introduce a national standard regarding duty hours and workload.

"The release of the report is a step in the right direction. This first phase of reflection and discussion between the different organizations and stakeholders concerned prompts us to review the training of resident physicians and their coaching in the workplace in order to optimize our health care system. The restriction on resident duty hours obliges us to rethink our ways of doing things. It is our system as a whole that has a workload problem," stated QMA President Dr. Laurent Marcoux.

About the QMA

The QMA is made up of close to 10,000 general practitioners, specialists, residents and medical students. Its mission is to bring together Québec's medical community in a context that promotes reflection and action for the benefit of the health of the population.

SOURCE: QUEBEC MEDICAL ASSOCIATION

Denise Pelletier
Communications Co-ordinator
Québec Medical Association
Telephone: [phone]
Toll free number: 1 800 363-3932
E-mail: [email protected]