In the evening of April 29, violent thunderstorms hit Montréal. At Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, the worst was narrowly averted. A major power outage paralyzed key areas: the operating rooms, intensive care, recovery room and the coronary care unit. Windows exploded in patient rooms. Elevators stopped with staff inside. One nurse was injured by a broken window. Health professionals had to continue working in the dark, by the light of headlamps and cell phones. All this, in a public hospital in Québec, in 2025.

It’s a miracle that no patient was seriously injured or died that night. But let’s not kid ourselves: this kind of incident could turn tragic at any moment. And there’s nothing unpredictable about it. The problem isn’t the weather. The problem is a dilapidated, overcrowded building with faulty systems, where every breakdown puts the lives of patients… and staff at risk.

It’s not a hospital, it’s a minefield. And it’s the healthcare professionals who have to venture there everyday. Across Québec, healthcare institutions are falling into disrepair while the government focuses on mega-projects, neglecting the safety of healthcare staff and the general public. These places of care have become high-risk zones.

The government talks about recognition. But while the ministers are congratulating the teams at press conferences, it is our members who have to deal with dilapidated and dangerous facilities. They are the ones running from one emergency to another, without knowing if the elevator will work or if the generator will start. They are the ones who absorb the consequences of government neglect.

Maisonneuve-Rosemont has become a repellent. Who wants to work in an institution where a simple March storm can transform a care room into a disaster zone? How do you attract and retain staff when physical safety itself is no longer guaranteed?

Minister Christian Dubé says he is reassured. Us, no. We are worried, tired and angry. Excuses are no longer enough. Neither are nice speeches. For months now, the government has been backtracking, stalling and postponing projects on the pretext of budgetary rigour. During this time, the situation has been deteriorating. And it’s our members and our patients paying the price.

 

Who can believe that if a huge hole opened up on an autoroute and threatened the lives of motorists, we would wait three years to repair it? We would fill this hole as a matter of urgency. We would secure the area immediately. Because it’s a matter of public safety. And this logic should apply to Maisonneuve-Rosemont. A dilapidated hospital that puts the lives of staff and patients at risk is an abyss in our health network. It needs to be fixed. Now.

Like the Collège des médecins du Québec, we are launching a wake-up call. A cry of alarm.

The government must immediately give a clear, binding and public timetable for the complete refurbishment of the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital. They must stop subjecting staff to avoidable risks. Investments in a decent environment for those who save lives must be made immediately.

As long as this hospital is not re-built, we can no longer be satisfied with the reassuring phrase ‘everyone is safe’. Because it is simply no longer true. At the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, the cup is full. And it’s overflowing.

Julie Bouchard
President, Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec—FIQ

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Photo: Jeangagnon, Wikimedia Commons, sous licence CC BY-SA 3.0