One call, one appointment!
Now a direct access to an appointment for your child, in Montreal: 514 890-6111
The Montreal Children's Hospital (Children's) of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) and the Centre hospitalier universitaire Sainte-Justine (CHUSJ) are pleased to announce the creation of a new single telephone number by the DRMG (Département régional de médecine générale de Montréal) that will allow Montreal families to quickly obtain a medical appointment for their child who is ill but whose condition does not require a visit to the emergency department.
The chief of the Département régional de médecine générale de Montréal (DRMG), Dr. François Loubert, is pleased with the implementation of the One Call, One Appointment line. He also reminds us that family physicians are part of the solution to relieve emergency room congestion at the two academic pediatric health centres.
"The 80 or so Family medicine groups (FMGs) and 350 medical clinics on the island of Montreal must be the first port of call in the healthcare network," says Dr. Loubert. "The FMGs and medical clinics on the island of Montreal have the capacity to meet the needs of the population. Patients of all ages should not hesitate to make an appointment for a regular follow-up or a non-urgent health problem that requires immediate intervention."
"This new offer, which is intended to provide rapid occasional care to 0 to 16-year-olds, will be offered Monday to Friday, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. This is a simple and effective solution to support parents faced with a one-off, semi-urgent health problem," rejoiced Dr. Marc Girard, Director of Professional Services at the CHU Sainte-Justine.
"We welcome this new service; it will allow us to treat children who must be seen quickly by a physician, but do not need to rush to the emergency department, which is instead designed and equipped to save children in critical condition," said Dr. Robert Barnes, Associate Director of Professional Services at the Montreal Children's Hospital.
This service, aimed specifically at the Montreal population, will seamlessly match the parent of an ailing child to a pediatric appointment within a few hours.
Avoiding long waits in pediatric emergency rooms
In addition to facilitating access to a quick appointment, the implementation of this new offer will allow parents to avoid going to the pediatric emergency room for health problems that require quick attention, but can be easily treated in the consultation office. For many weeks, the emergency rooms at the Children's and Sainte-Justine have been extremely busy, resulting in long waits for families and exhaustion among medical staff.
It’s important to note that patients should try to get an appointment with their family doctor or their FMG before calling this line. And of course, in the event of an acute health problem, with a deterioration in the child's general condition, parents should not hesitate to call the emergency services.
– 30 –
About the CHU Sainte-Justine
The Sainte-Justine University Hospital Center is the largest mother-child hospital in Canada. It is a member of the Université de Montréal's health network of excellence (RUIS). It has 5,457 employees, including 1,532 nursing assistants and 1,000 care professionals, 520 physicians, dentists and pharmacists, 822 residents and more than 204 researchers, 411 volunteers, 4,416 trainees and students from all disciplines. The CHUSJ has 484 beds, 67 of which are at the Centre de réadaptation Marie Enfant (CRME), the only centre dedicated exclusively to pediatric rehabilitation in Quebec. The Sainte-Justine UHC has been recognized by the WHO as a "Health Promoting Hospital".
About the Montreal Children’s Hospital
Established in 1904, the Montreal Children's Hospital (MCH) is Quebec’s oldest children’s hospital and the pediatric hospital of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC). A tertiary and quaternary care teaching and research facility, treating newborns, children and adolescents up to age 18, it serves 63 percent of the geographic population of Quebec.
With its pediatric care and research facilities adjacent to the adult facility on the Glen site, the Children’s is in a unique position to offer services and research across the lifespan. The Centre for Innovative Medicine - the only clinical research centre in a hospital setting in North America – allows its researchers to conduct clinical trials on the Hospital site.
The Children's is a leader in providing a broad spectrum of highly specialized care to young patients and families from all across Quebec. The hospital is a provincially designated trauma centre and is recognized for its wealth of expertise in cardiology and cardiac surgery, emergency care, neurology and neurosurgery. thechildren.com
About the Montreal DRMG
The Département régional de médecine générale de Montréal is comprised of some 2,580 family physicians practising on the island of Montreal, representing 25 percent of all family physicians in Quebec.
Information and interviews:
Florence Meney
Associate Director of Communications – Media relations
CHU Sainte-Justine
[email protected]
514 755-2516
Christine Bouthillier
Information agent
Montreal Children’s Hospital
[email protected]
514-412-4307, ext. 23870
To request an interview with Dr. François Loubert, please contact: [email protected]