Winter clinics open across Quebec as cold and flu season gets underway

Quebec’s winter clinics aimed at addressing cold and flu symptoms are officially open as of Monday.

Patients will be able to visit 55 clinics across the province in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Capitale-Nationale, Montreal, Outaouais, Lanaudière and Montérégie regions.

The clinics are meant to offer front-line services for non-urgent cases and ease pressure on hospital emergency rooms during the busy winter season. They also help patients who do not have a family doctor.

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As part of the program, the winter clinics offer extended hours during weekends and evenings.

The provincial government launched the initiative last year to address an uptick in patients. In 2018, the winter clinics provided care to 30,000 Quebecers.

The winter clinics operate from December until March 31, 2020. A full list of the flu and cold clinics can be found online.

READ MORE: How not to get sick this December