CHUM (Montreal) turns cancer patients away

"The crisis at Notre Dame Hospital, a renowned cancer treatment centre, has reached such acute proportions that hospital officials are sending letters to women diagnosed with gynecological cancer to seek treatment elsewhere – in hospitals in Quebec City and Trois Rivières....."

"In fit of anger, (Dr.) Sauthier penned an open letter to his colleagues accusing the Quebec Health Department, the Quebec College of Physicians and his hospital of ignoring best practices in favour of balancing the books.

"Ovarian cancer survivor Suzanne Poulet read Sauthier’s letter aloud after Health Minister Yves Bolduc lauded his department’s successes inbreast and colon cancer screening programs as well as anti-smoking legislation. “What about problems operating on women with gynecological cancer?” Poulet demanded. Such delays are “intolerable” and “unacceptable,” Bolduc responded. “It’s an emergency and we are in the process of fixing it.”

Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/health/CHUM+turms+cancer+patients+away/2945070/story.html#ixzz0lzEiOwCF