Foreign doctors, the solution to the shortage of physicians in Quebec

Introduced by Peter Karambatos and explained by Marco Nocella, the motion was well received by the 500 delegates who were meeting in La Pocatière. "The youth members realized that there was a problem. (Although) there's a shortage of doctors in Quebec, doctors with foreign qualifications cannot practice because of bureaucratic reasons," Marco Nocella deplores.

During the presentation of the resolution, the young man had benefit of the testimony of a 16-year-old Laval girl whose mother is a doctor who cannot practice here.

In response, Laval MNAs Guy Ouellette and Alain Paquet stated that the young woman could have expressed a more factual point of view. Mr. Ouellette (Chomedey) and Mr. Paquet (Laval-des-Rapides) made the statement at a press conference this past Thursday, called to congratulate the regional delegates for their work at the youth convention.

The MNAs want the resolution to reach the highest levels of the Liberal Party of Quebec. "It's not the role of the government to select doctors, it's up to the College of Physicians. On the other hand, it's clear that certain improvements implemented in recent years have resulted from pressure exercised by the government and by the Minister of Health and Social Services, Philippe Couillard," says Alain Paquet.

To prove the point, Mr. Paquet made a comparison between 2002, when only five foreign physicians were given residency status and 2007, when the number jumped to 54.

For Guy Ouellette, the adopting of the resolution brought to the convention by the Laval delegates and the fact that the motion will be debated at the party's General Council Meeting in mid-September is evidence that the Liberal Party of Quebec is ready to address the question. "It's not just Mr. Couillard's battle, it's every Quebecer's battle," states the Chomedey MNA.

François Beaudry, the new president of the Liberal party of Quebec Youth Commission, believes that the choices made today will have an impact on the future. He says that the problem of insufficient doctors in Quebec has to be resolved now otherwise it is likely to get worse.

Alain Paquet, a former member of the Liberal Party of Quebec's Youth Commission, also noted that the decision to teach English in grade one, the elimination of junk food in schools and the creation of a generations fund are just a few of the ideas proposed by the youth wing which found their way into law.